The initial idea for Tonight’s Homework (Masgh-e Emshab) was based on Abbas Kiarostami’s film Homework (Mashgh-e Shab) that focused on the challenge of doing assignments at home. But since students today face greater challenges than the issue of homework, it was decided that the film would focus on more relevant aspects of Iran’s educational and developmental systems.
In this film we encounter three different socio-economic levels: the upper class, who are incredibly wealthy and for whom the issue of education will not make a significant difference in shaping their future; the middle class, where the parents are busy making ends meet and have little time left for attending to their children’s education; and finally the lower class, where the children are forced to work in order to survive, leaving essentially no room for education.
Ashkan Nejati was born in 1978. He is an author, director, actor, and composer for theater and cinema who received his Masters degree in Theater Directing from Tehran University’s College of Fine Arts. He has directed various plays including “The Anniversary” by Chekhov, “The Émigrés” by Sławomir Mrożek, and “Something will be Done” by Heinrich Böll. He has also appeared in more than twenty plays. His first foray into cinema was as an actor in the film “There will be blood on Wednesday”, followed by “Appendicitis” and “Voiceless”. He has also composed the music for the opening titles and end credits of “Conditional Release” and “Voiceless”.
Mehran Nematollahi was born in Isfahan in 1985. He started to professionally take part in the arts in 2009, first as an actor and later as an author. He ha s written two plays: “Eternal Calling” and “Forgetfulness on a Repeating Line”, as well as a collection of short stories titled “There is no Alternative”. He has also collaborated with various publications including Roshd, and Hamshahri Javan. He has received numerous awards from literary festivals, including: “Mosque and Trench” (Masjed-o- Sangar) (Isfahan), “Festival of Morality Tales” (Tehran), and “Efficient Consumption” (Oil Ministry), etc.
