2022, Greece, 90' ֍ Dir. Anneta Papathanasiou
English/Greek/Farsi (Turkish/English subtitles)
While it may seem ironic, in Afghanistan, laughing is a way for young actor Karim Asir to convey social messages to the Afghan people. Amid bombs, threats, and overall disaster, Karim has taken it upon himself to become the Afghan Charlie Chaplin. When the Taliban take over Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, Karim and falls into great danger, receives death threats, and is forced to abandon his art. Annetta Papathanasiou’s documentary chronicles Karim's efforts to escape the Taliban and flee to Greece. Papathanassiou takes us on a journey that reveals the importance of laughter, in Afghanistan and beyond. The film shares with us Karim’s black-and-white slapstick videos on the one hand, while on the other it allows us to accompany the director in interviews that present the Taliban's perspective on laughter and art and shine a light on how laughter has been criticized and perceived as a threat for centuries.
Anneta Papathanassiou is an award-winning film director living in Athens, Greece. She has a degree from the University of Athens Faculty of Law’s Department of Economics and from the E. Hatzikou Drama and Film School, and she has studied theater at New York University and HB Studio in New York. An actor with 30 years of experience performing on stage and television, Papathanassiou teaches “Improvisation for Theater” and “Theater Plays” at the American College of Greece (DEREE). She has published two books on theater, “Lights Please” and “Theater Games” (KEDROS), and in 2011, she founded “ELİART”, an independent theater in the heart of Athens. Since 2000, Papathanasiou has been directing and producing documentaries mainly on human-rights issues, and her films have received numerous international awards. “Playing With Fire”, which followed women performers in Afghanistan, was featured in Foça Film Days 2020 on-line festival. Laughing in Afghanistan premiered at Thessaloniki in 2023.
