‘Holy Spider’ Star Zar Amir to Be Honored at New York’s Metrograph With Screening of Oscar-Qualifying Short ‘Two People Exchanging Saliva’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Zar Amir, the French-Iranian star of Ali Abbasi‘s “Holy Spider,” will be honored at New York’s Metrograph Theater with a special tribute including a screening of the Oscar-qualifying short film “Two People Exchanging Saliva.”

Amir stars alongside Luàna Bajrami (“Portrait of a Lady on Fire”) in the dystopian short which is directed by Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh. The film, which has qualified to enter the Oscar race, world premiered at Telluride and won a prize at the AFI Fest.

Titled “Zero Compromise: The Films of Zar Amir,” the tribute will kick off September 27 at Metrograph Theater.

The Tehran-born Amir, who won best actress at Cannes with her performance in Abbasi’s thriller “Holy Spider” in 2022, is also a filmmaker. She directed her first short, “Khat,” when she was only 18, and has since established herself as a politically engaged artist who has rebelled against Iran’s oppressive regime. Her recent acting credits include Noora Niasari’s Sundance movie “Shayda” which represented Australia in last year’s Oscar race.

Both “Holy Spider” and “Shayda” will screen as part of the tribute, on top of “Tatami,” which she co-directed with Guy Nattiv and premiered at the Venice Film Festival, and Mehran Tamadon’s documentary “My Worst Enemy.” In the latter, she is featured as one of the exiled Iranians invited to interrogate the director, as though he were an agent of the Islamic Republic.

Amir will be on the ground for the New York event and will participate in several conversations, notably a Q&A alongside the filmmaking duo behind “Two People Exchanging Saliva,” Musteata and Singh, on Sept. 27. It will be moderated by Columbia University professor Annette Insdorf.

Narrated by Vicky Krieps and shot in black and white, “Two People Exchanging Saliva” unfolds in a world where kisses are punishable by death and slaps to the face are a regular part of social intercourse. Amir stars as unhappily married Angine who is infatuated with salesgirl Malaise (Bajrami), threatening to put them both of them in danger of terrible reprisals.

As part of the program, other Q&A will bring together filmmakers and talent, including Charlotte Wells and Krieps.