World Premiere, Wide Angle: Documentary Competition, 2026
On the Road with Abbas Kiarostami
온 더 로드: 압바스 키아로스타미
Director Seifollah SAMADIAN
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★Avg. rating
Score
Competitive section
Travel/Road MovieTrue StoryFilms about FilmsArt/Artist
‘Remembering the sweet days with him and the bitter 10 years without him.’ A tribute film made by cinematographer Seifollah Samadian, who had been Abbas Kiarostami’s cinematographer, to mark the tenth anniversary of his death - that would be the dry way to introduce On the Road with Abbas Kiarostami. But this film’s ambition and achievement easily surpass our expectations. For 25 years, Samadian traveled with Kiarostami and recorded their journeys. He now turns that footage into a film in the spirit of Kiarostami’s own films, arranging within it the secret keys to the beauty and mystery of his films. Ten stories, ten journeys unfold, using the ‘car’ and the ‘road’ as motifs. What does it mean to be on the road with Kiarostami? On these journeys, they are accompanied by Jafar Panahi. But the film’s most unexpected charm lies in the moments that capture Kiarostami’s small, silly pranks and jokes. These are joyful memories that bring the film to life. This heartwarming tribute to Kiarostami is beautiful, warm, and, above all, delightful.
Programme note by KANG Sowon
Stills4
Screenings3
Sat, 10/10
15:2017:13
CGV Centum City 4
303Guest Q&AKE, Korean subtitles + English subtitles or English dialogue
Sun, 10/11
17:2018:48
LOTTE CINEMA Centum City 10
455KE, Korean subtitles + English subtitles or English dialogue
Mon, 10/12
19:0020:53
LOTTE CINEMA Centum City 6
527Guest Q&AKE, Korean subtitles + English subtitles or English dialogue
An Iranian documentary director, photographer, curator, and educator. He began working in photography in 1968 and in documentary filmmaking in 1978. He has directed more than 40 documentaries, which have been presented at major international film festivals including Amsterdam, Venice, Tribeca, and Tokyo. As a cinematographer, he worked with Abbas Kiarostami on ABC Africa (2001), Five (2003), and Roads (2005), and his own directorial works about Kiarostami, 76 Minutes & 15 Seconds with Abbas Kiarostami (2016) and Kiarostami at Work (2023), were presented at festivals including the Busan International Film Festival.
From Busan International Film Festival 2026, No. 31
