"Rise" by Naza Alakija

On Newroz 2023, Iranian activist Naza Alakija paid tribute to the “Jin, Jiyan, Azadî” movement by releasing the short film Rise, about a young woman who, like Jina Emini, is arrested by Iran’s morality police on the streets of Tehran.

Alakija, the founder and CEO of London-based Evoca Foundation, an NGO that advocates for girls’ and young women’s access to education and that funds grassroots movements that seek holistic solutions to the climate crisis and equitable futures for all. She produced the film with partners who remain anonymous for fear of retribution from Iran’s security forces.

Rise features the British-Iranian actor Yasaman Mohsani. A voice-over reads the words of Maya Angelou’s poem “Still I Rise,” and the soundtrack is the music of Kurdish artist Hani Mojtahedy and Iranian rapper Gdaal. It premiered at an Everyman Cinema in London.

Alakija hopes that Rise can help keep the fight of Iranian women and their allies in the global spotlight and contribute to regime change.