Description

Cage of Dreams is a documentary project following the wrongful imprisonment of Saeed Malekpour and the decade-long fight led by his sister, Maryam, to bring him home. Arrested while visiting his dying father in Iran, Saeed is subjected to solitary confinement, torture, and years of uncertainty—cut off from his family and the life he once knew. At the center of the story is Maryam’s relentless pursuit of justice, navigating political systems, personal sacrifice, and the emotional toll of advocating for her brother’s freedom.

What distinguishes the project is its approach to memory. Rather than relying solely on interviews or archival material, Cage of Dreams reconstructs pivotal moments from Saeed and Maryam’s experiences through performances by actors—allowing them to witness their own story from the outside. Through this process, they actively shape and guide the re-enactments in real time, engaging with memories that were once inaccessible or overwhelming.

Developed in collaboration with Darkslope and Immersion Room, the project uses virtual production to build responsive, real-time environments that recreate both physical locations—such as Tehran city centre—and the psychological landscapes of confinement. Within these environments, memory becomes something that can be revisited with distance and agency, shifting the act of remembering into a process of witnessing and reclaiming one’s own story.