A Unique Perspective Iranian-Canadian Director Discusses Creation of ëSecret Ballotí by Ky N. Nguyen Over coffee and tea at the Four Seasons Hotel, Babak Payami spoke to The Washington Diplomat about his second feature, ìSecret Ballotîówinner of Best Director at the Venice Film Festival. ìA lot of the issues that are portrayed in ëSecret Ballotí are just as valid here in the U.S. as they are in Iran: fundamental questions of the extent of the peopleís involvement in their politics,î Payami noted. ìWe started shooting in November 2000, which is exactly the time of the U.S. presidential election controversy. I never disclose which one, but I did add a scene reminding the audience of the Florida events deciding the election.î Born in Iran, Payami spent nine years of his youth in Afghanistan, where his father worked for an oil company. He later moved to Canada, where he took cinema studies at the University of Toronto and became a citizen. During a trip to Iranóìthe motherlandîóhe conceived and produced his acclaimed first feature, ìOne More Day.î Payam i now splits his time between Tehran and Toronto. ìSecret Ballotî describes what happens on election day when an idealistic young woman lands on a remote island to serve as the election agent. She faces many obstacles, not the least of which is the chauvinistic soldier unwillingly assigned to assist her. Payami recalled how he thought of the story: ìIt was a compilation of observations that you make when you look around and you get more engaged. It all crystallized through an idea by Mohsen Makhmalbaf [ìKandaharî], who made a pseudo-documentary called ëTesting Democracy.í Basically, I took that and ran with it. I felt that the element of the absurd and the comic were very good balancing factors in not being judgmental or waving political flags, but in portraying issues that are as universal as they are specific to the situation in Iran.î He continued, ìThe film, in a way, is a road movie about the problems of the integration process. It portrays the alienation between the establishment and the peopleóthe lack of communication and the lack of understanding. I used the convenience of the people on Kish Island speaking different languages for the filmís goals. Iran is historically a multicultural country. From any point in mainland Iran, if you travel 200 miles in any direction, people speak completely different languages. You have anywhere from Mongolian, Kurdistani, Arabic, Afghani, Azerbaijani, you name it. That has been one of the main distinguishing features of Iran as a country compared with many of its neighbors,î Payami said. The director said many Iranians would be surprised by the 2000 U.S. presidential election, and not simply because of the contested outcome. ìWhat is striking to people at large in Iran is that the Iranian people are used to figures of 95 percent electoral participation and 99 percent winning candidates. Itís a little difficult to fathom 20 percent turnout,î he said. ìThere are a lot of misconceptions in that direction as well. People would automatically assume that the larger the numbers, the more democratic.Ö That American mentality of bigger is better has seeped across the world, I suppose,î he added and laughed. ìThen again, Iran is a very diverse country. One would tend to generalize and say this is the way Iranians think. There are a lot of different mentalities in Iran. I appreciate that, and I think people should appreciate this diversity in peopleís approach to different issues. There are some people who feel very strongly in favor of the U.S. and some people who feel very strongly in opposition to the U.S. And there are a lot of people in between.î Payami reflected on his background as an expatriate of Iran and how that background influenced the making and overall vision for ìSecret Ballot.î ìObviously, when you live inside a situation over time, there is a tendency to be desensitized toward certain aspects of life around you. When one enters with a fresh mindówithout the gradual, slow influenceóthen one would be able to provide hopefully a different perspective, not necessarily a correct perspective, but just a different perspective,î he explained. ìItís with that relativity in approach, perspective, form and delivery that hopefully, on the one hand as a filmmaker, one can at least contribute to the attempt of flipping the page stylistically as far as Iranian cinema is concerned. And from a fanaticís standpoint, one can maybe offer a fresh perspective on the situation, maybe encourage the appreciation of diversity and to try to steer away from looking at everything black and white, right and wrong, with us or against usómore toward a tendency of looking at things with a level of complexity and not using simple-minded formulations in dealing with the situation.î Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.