The Kurdish feature film Zhan has won two major awards at the Birmingham Kurdish Film Festival in the United Kingdom, receiving honors for best screenplay and best actor.
Director Burhan Ahmadi described the achievement as a significant milestone, noting that while the awards have reached Sulaymaniyah, they have not yet been officially delivered due to administrative procedures.
Mahir Hassan, who played the film’s lead role, received the best actor award. The cast also includes Shima Malayi, Maideh Fazli, Afshin Khidri, Nishtiman Rasoulnejad, Akram Mohammadi, and Leila Beigizadeh.
Directed by Burhan Ahmadi and co-produced by Burhan Ahmadi and Mahir Hassan, Zhan was filmed between 2022 and 2023 in Sanandaj, East Kurdistan.
The latest honors add to the film’s growing international recognition. Zhan previously won best narrative film at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival in Greece and received the Yılmaz Güney Award for best film at the London Kurdish Film Festival.
