My Favourite Cake

As the directors were not permitted to leave Iran, the film was represented by the film's lead actors, Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha. Before the screening, the actors presented a statement and a photograph of the directing couple. The statement was read out by Maryam Moghaddam, who said:

"We have come to the conclusion that it is no longer possible to tell the story of an Iranian woman while complying with strict rules such as the mandatory hijab. These red lines prevent women from having their lives depicted honestly, as full human beings. This time, we chose to breach those restrictive boundaries and accept the consequences of our decision to portray a truthful picture of Iranian women — images that have been banned in Iranian cinema since the Islamic Revolution...

My Favourite Cake is a film that celebrates life. It is a story rooted in the everyday realities of middle-class women in Iran, an intimate look at a woman's solitude as she enters her later years. It offers a vision of women's lives that is rarely told. The narrative contradicts the common image of Iranian women and, much like the life stories of many solitary people around the world, is about savouring the short, sweet moments in life...

Ladies and gentlemen, we proudly dedicate this premiere to the honourable and brave women of our country who have moved to the front lines of the struggle for social change, who are attempting to tear down the walls of outmoded and fossilised beliefs, and who sacrifice their lives in pursuit of freedom."