DUSHANBE, February 27, 2012, Asia-Plus – International media sources report A Separation (in Persian  Jodaeiye Nader az Simin “The separation of Nader from Simin”) is a universally acclaimed 2011 Iranian drama film which won the Oscar for best foreign language film on 2012, becoming the first Iranian movie to win the honor.

It is written and directed by Asghar Farhadi, starring Leila Hatami, Peyman Moaadi, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat and Sarina Farhadi.

It focuses on an Iranian middle-class couple who separate, and the intrigues which follow when the husband hires a lower-class caretaker for his elderly father.

Nader and Simin have been married for fourteen years and live with their eleven-year-old daughter Termeh in Tehran.  The family belongs to the urban upper middle-class and the couple is on the verge of separation.  Simin wants to leave the country with her husband and daughter, as she does not want Termeh to grow up under the prevailing conditions.  This desire is not shared by Nader. He is concerned for his elderly father, who lives with the family and suffers from Alzheimer''s disease.  When Nader firmly decides to stay in Iran, Simin files for divorce.

The family court judges the couple''s problems not to be grave enough to warrant divorce and rejects Simin''s application. Simin then leaves her husband and daughter and moves back in with her parents.  On the recommendations of his wife, Nader hires Razieh, a young, pregnant and deeply religious woman from a poor suburb, to take care of his father while he works at a bank.

A Separation received the Golden Bear for Best Film and the Silver Bears for Best Actress and Best Actor at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival, becoming the first Iranian film to win the Golden Bear.  It won 69th Golden Globe Awards Best Foreign Language Film.  The film was also the official Iranian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 2012 Academy Awards where it has won for Best Foreign Language Film and was nominated for Best Original Screenplay.