Shirin Abedi receives BFF-Förderpreis

admin5 years ago on news

Shirin Abedi is one of 12 students from Germany, Austria and Schwitzerland, who will receive the BFF grant of € 1,500 to continue a photo project.

Sometimes Yasamin (22) dances on the rooftop of her home. Many Iranian women dream of singing and dancing under the sky of their homeland. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.

Shirin receives the grant based on her final Photo I project “May I have this Dance”. Shirin’s says about project: “Since the revolution in Iran, dance is banned from the Iranian public. Nevertheless, more and more Iranians are dancing today and try to make this their profession. My project speaks about the current social change in Iran with young ballet dancers of the Iranian post-war generation who stand up for self-determination, equality and freedom.”

The project is made in the spring 2019 at DMJX. The grant gives Shirin the possibility to go back to Tehran and continue her work about the dancers.

“If they take away dance from me, it is like they took away my life.” – Mojdeh is 20 years old and dreams of becoming a professional ballet dancer. She wants to pursue a dance career in Austria or Germany, therefore she is learning German. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.
Mojdeh and Yasamin met in their ballet classes and became close friends. They rehearse three times a week for their performance of “Arash the Archer”, a heroic figure of the Iranian mythology. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.
Mojdeh streches in the evening after her rehearsal at home. Since some iranian dancers got arrested because their dancing videos went viral on instagram, Mojdeh keeps her account private for her safety. She often shares videos of her dance or workouts on Instagram. ”Instagram is one of our few delights.”. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.
The crew learns a choreography designed by a former student of the Iranian national ballet company. After the revolution, he pursued an architecture career. Meanwhile he teachs ballet to the new generation of dancers in Iran. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.
Mojdeh on her way to university in Tehran. She studied natural science at high school. But after her graduation, she changed her field and applied for the Tehran University of Art and got accepted to study acting. Picture by Shirin Abedi from the series “May I have this Dance”.

The BFF grants are given each year by the organisation Berufsverband Freie Fotografen und Filmgestalter e.V. (BFF), which is an professional association for photographers and filmmakers.