When God Sleeps
World Premiere

When God Sleeps

Documentary Competition
| USA, Germany | 88 MINUTES | English, Farsi, German | English subtitles
Documentary, Music, TFF Alumni
“My songs didn’t make me famous. The fatwa did.” When God Sleeps unfolds against the backdrop of the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks in the Bataclan concert venue and European right-wing backlash against Middle-Eastern refugees. It deftly weaves the journey of exiled Iranian musician Shahin Najafi with historical context and intimate biographical detail, rooting the narrative in Najafi’s immediate and unavoidable reality, living under a fatwa issued against him by hardline Shiite clerics. As Najafi juggles a personal life and budding romance in Cologne, far from loved ones, with a professional career whose high profile may cost him his life, he spars with bandmates who are ambivalent about the peril his status places on their lives, and battles German police who refuse to see the death threat on his head as a legitimate danger. With camerawork that underlines the intimate aspect of this film, we bear witness to the life of an outspoken artist defying powerful men intent on silencing him.

—Cara Cusumano

Cast & Credits
Directed by
Till Schauder
Till Schauder is a German filmmaker based in Brooklyn. He made his U.S. debut with the feature Santa Smokes which won Best Director at the Tokyo International Film Festival and the Studio Hamburg Newcomer Award. His first documentary, The Iran Job, was released worldwide and shortlisted for the German equivalent of the Academy Awards in 2013.
Director
Till Schauder
Screenwriter
Till Schauder
Cinematographer
Till Schauder, Gerardo Milszstein
Editor
Tina Grapenthin
Composer
Max Avery Lichtenstein
Executive Producer
Julie Goldman, Lisa Kleiner Chanoff, Bonni Cohen, Abigail Disney, Chris Clements, Gini Reticker
Producer
Sara Nodjoumi, Till Schauder
Editing Consultant
Mark Becker
Assistant Editor
Aron Koszeg
Cast
Shahin Najafi, Leili Bazargan, Günter Wallraff, Majid Kazemi, Shahryar Ahadi

Contacts
International Sales Contact
Sara Nodjoumi
Partner Pictures
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 347 634 4315
snodjoumi21@gmail.com
Print Source
Sara Nodjoumi
Partner Pictures
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 347 634 4315
snodjoumi21@gmail.com
US Sales Contact
Evan Krauss
Gray Krauss Stratford Sandler Des Rochers LLP
New York, NY 10001
Phone: 212 966 6700
ekrauss@gkssd.com
Press Contact
Michelle DiMartino
Falco Ink
New York, New York 10016
Phone: 212 445 7100
michelledimartino@falcoink.com
* Rush Tickets available at venue except for
Beacon Theatre
Rush will be offered when advanced tickets for a screening or event are no longer available at venues other than Beacon Theatre.
The Rush system functions as a standby line that will form at the venue approximately one hour prior to scheduled start time. Admittance is based on availability and will begin roughly 10 minutes prior to program start time. Rush Tickets are the same price as advance tickets and are payable upon entry.

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