"Bahman!" "I don't know what "vaa" means in Kurdish, but you're holding it too long." "Please stay in time." "Try again." " Two bars earlier." " Yes." "Babak?" "Yes?" " I need another favor." " What?" "Can you ask him if we can take two more hours to finish our last track?" "And you'll be all done?" "What can I tell him?" "Bahman, give your voice a break." "Wait a minute." "Excuse me." "They're driving this guy crazy." "He comes here to sing and relax a little." "They won't let him shoot his next film, his last film's sold on the street." "What can I say?" "It's not nice." " Right?" " Yes." "Can he record here?" "No." "He put down a big deposit." "Dear Bahman!" " Take it from two bars earlier." " Okay." "All right, relax." "Is this music for his film?" "No, it's to lift his spirits." "What's it about?" "Underground music in Iran." "It started with the show near Tehran." "They arrested 400 people." "That's where the idea comes from." "He wants to make a film about Iranian underground music." "With professional actors?" "No, there aren't any." "You know Ashkan and Negar?" "They're in it." "Anything else?" "Aren't they leaving Iran in three weeks?" ""No One Knows About Persian Cats"" " Yes?" " Hello." "Can you open the door?" " Who is it?" " It's Negar." "Negar, the friend of Ashkan." " Which Ashkan?" " From Take It Easy Hospital." "Okay, come in." "Did it open?" "No." " And now?" " Yeah, thanks." " Come in." " Hi." "How's it going, Negar?" "Long time no see!" "I was passing by." "I thought I'd look you up." "Ashkan got out of jail?" "Yeah, he got out on Monday." "You've made it big." "I hear you were on cable TV." "They talked about the concert." ""Blood drinking and devil worshiping..."" "That's how they work." "They try to smear musicians and lock them up." "I hear you're playing in London." "But we have no band." "Our band's fallen apart." "You need two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer." "Well, Ashkan wants to leave for good." "This film is gonna win an Oscar this year." "If it doesn't, you get free DVDs till the end of the year." "Babak, I don't have a problem." "I have a passport and I've not had any visa problems." "Ashkan's the problem." "If you find someone, that'd be great." " Someone to do what?" " To help him leave." " To help Ashkan leave Iran?" " Yes." "See him?" "You want me to talk to him?" " He works with bands too?" " Yeah, he does it all." "I don't smuggle people." "You don't smuggle illegals?" "Don't say that." "She'll think I'm some kind of criminal" "How many have you smuggled out?" "That was David, not me." "Well, get Mash David or someone to help them out." "Rebelling against Mommy..." "I'm not rebelling against anyone." "It's not me who wants to leave." " It's Ashkan." " Who's Ashkan?" "Her band mate." "He wants to leave." "Help them out." "So he's rebelling." "We just want to make music." "He has no passport or visa." "Tons of people make music here." "Go and play with them!" "You can't make music here or say what you want." "How can we make music in this country?" "What did you say at the start?" " You can't make music here." " That's all I needed to hear." "You're not just rebelling." "You're going for your music." "So I'll help you." "Dear Nader... take her number and make an appointment." "Help her out." "What's your number?" " Nader, what is this place?" " Bear with me a minute." "Oh, no, police." " You like it?" " Yeah, interesting place." "Come in." "Hello, sweetie pie!" "Hello, my little darling!" "Were you lonely?" " What's its name?" " Bellucci." " Bellucci?" " Yes." "Monica Bellucci." "He's the best actor in the world for me." "Come on!" "Come on!" "Hello!" "You have two beautiful guests!" "They've been watching Indian films." "They love 'em!" "This is Scarlett." "This is Rhett Butler." "They've seen every Indian movie around." "I showed them Shole, the part where the actress has to dance on glass, and this one cried, I swear." "I saw it myself!" "This one too!" "No wonder they call them lovebirds." "This is the best studio in the world." "To hell with Paramount and Warner Brothers and the rest of them!" "Got that?" "This is my number one studio." "Is that your CD?" "I'm turning my back on you." "I'll give you some hemp later." "This CD is from two years ago." "A bunch of us got together and recorded it." "Who heard it?" "What did you do?" "Nothing came of it." " You didn't get permission?" " No way." "I'll distribute it on the black market so all of Tehran hears it, people more powerful than the Islamic Ministry." "Do you want me to?" "Then that's what I'll do!" "Let's listen." "Tell me" "Where's the sun" "Take me" "To the moon" "I sit in the corner waiting for the sun to shine" "I sit in the corner waiting for the rain to follow me" "And I'll know she rides" "She rides away" "She turns around, she..." "Is this you?" "You're playing the instruments?" " Yes." " Really?" "You're insane!" "Do you know what you can do with this?" "We tried knocking on every door." "It's impossible." "It's no use." "You can't do anything here." "There's no point trying." "We'll do it." "I'm gonna get you a permit." "Knock the doors down!" "Shout!" "This is what music is supposed to be!" "What's with you, giving up on this kind of talent?" "I've got connections at the Censorship Bureau." "I'm gonna get you an authentic permit, understand?" "With an audience and 2,000 tickets, the works." "I'll get you a permit." "We came for something else, Nader." "I know that!" "I'll get you your passports and visas." "But damn it, do this for your friends and countrymen!" "It'll be incredible!" "I can see how classy this music is." "It's indie rock?" "Yeah, but..." "I'm not an idiot." "You want to get a band together." "There are 312 indie groups in Iran." "No way." "What?" "You think it's just Tehran?" "Ever heard Kurdish indie?" "Khorasani, Lori, Baluch?" "There's 2,000 pop groups in Iran." "Where's that list of banned female singers?" "Here it is." "I know three generations of women in this country who aren't allowed to sing." "Look!" "This guy's one of the best." "He's a good friend of mine." "He's great." "Better than anyone you can think of." "Hamed!" "Hamed!" "Hamed." " Yes." " Hello." " Hi." " Hey, how are you?" "What a wonderful cat!" "Sit down." "Did you see the kittens?" "You know that's not their mother?" "She had an accident." "She had six kittens." "Four kittens." "Tell her the story" "Well, she was pregnant." "But she had an accident, and her kittens died." "So a friend brought these so they'd all be happy." " Is this a bad time?" " No." "What do you want?" "We need a good guitarist." "We're trying to get a band together." "We want to go abroad to play some shows." " What genre?" " Indie rock." "Can you help us?" "If I can, I will." "Wandering like the wind through the desert" "Taken by the wind like grains of sand" "Discontented with the world as you are" "Like mud" "Praise to you for knowing that freedom exists" "Woe is you who knows this but has been disgraced" "Praise to you for singing of your desire" "Woe is you whose voice emerges from a well" "What did you think of Hamed?" "He was great." "But he'll probably leave before us." "Everyone's leaving." "Whatsit we tell them in London if we can't get a band together?" "I don't know." "There's an email from France about an indie festival in Nice after the London concert." "Do you understand?" "We should give Nader more money to get us a permit." "Let's go see David first." "It's more important to have his money ready." "They're not likely to give us a permit anyway." "We need to check out those bands and choose the people we need." "A guitarist, a drummer..." "It'd be great to do a show." "We could invite all our friends." "Even our parents." "It'd be good if they could see us perform at least once." " Nader?" " Yes?" "Could we pay Mash David in installments?" "God willing." "Follow me, I'll take care of it." "Sorry, we're short on cash." "Don't worry." "Hello." "Where's David?" "Straight ahead and to the right." "Come on." "You got that, Negar?" " Got it, Ashkan?" " Yes, okay." "Just be polite and obedient, and it'll be okay." "Come on." "Wait." "Hello." "It's not expensive for what I do." "Greetings, Mash David." "You never come around any more." "Hi." "These are the friends I mentioned." "Have a seat." "On the left, not in the middle." "It's broken, you'll fall." "A bit more." "You haven't been coming by." "And that movie you brought me was useless." "It was a great film." "It was awful." "A crime romance is wonderful." "No way." "No romance." " Well, what do you want?" " Action, action!" " What?" " Killings." " How many?" " A hundred." " A hundred?" " 100 killings and no romance." " No romance?" " No." "Can you kill 100 people and be in love?" "Yeah, why not?" "You're either a lover or a killer." "Here's an action flick." "Marlon Brando." "That's old." "Bring me something new." "Excuse me, are you here for passports too?" "No, we came for visas." "Where are you going?" "Any place we can relax:" "Australia, Germany, America, England..." "We need some fresh air, to see new places, like the Louvre or Niagara Falls." "We'll stay where we feel happiest." " What?" " No love stories." " It'll stop me sleeping." " I see!" "Just take that away!" "Don't bring it back here!" "All right, all right..." "Here, I brought you Al Pacino." " No, Al Patin." " What, then?" "Give me that other one." "Oh, I know." "He means Nicholas Cage!" "Looks like David as a boy!" "We're supposed to do a concert in London." " How many of you are there?" " Five." "What kind of music do you play?" "Indie rock." "Oh, I love indie rock." "50 Cent, Madonna..." "They're great." "I hope we can come to your concert." "God willing, you will." "Mr. David, are our passports ready?" "They're almost done." " Roshan!" " Yes!" " Bring me those two passports." " I'll throw them!" "Go get them!" "Mr. Kamran, your passports are ready." "Thank you." "This way, straight ahead." "Please step forward." "Mr. Kamran, this is yours." "Thank you." " What's your wife's surname?" " Boloorian." " Boloorian?" " Yes." "It's missing an A, but that's okay." "Don't worry, you can go wherever you like." "I might run into problems." "If it were a problem, we'd fix it, but it's not." "The world is a shambles." "Well, good-bye." "I hope to see your concert." "Thank you, see you there." "Good-bye." "Sit down here." "They're artists." "They want to leave." "Help my friends out." "All right." " What's your name, kid?" " Ashkan." " Surname?" " Kooshan." " Right." "And you?" " Negar." " Surname?" " Shaghaghi." "Speak up a little." " Shaghaghi." " Write it down." " I'm writing it down." " Write it down, man." " You want to emigrate?" " If possible." " How many of you?" " Five, I think." "How many passports do you want?" "Negar doesn't need a passport." "Five visas and two passports." " Write that down." " I am." "Five passports?" " No." "Five visas, two passports." " Get it right!" " Are you aware of the cost?" " No, we have no idea." "I'll read it out to you." "Current passport prices..." "Regular Iranian passport:" "Four million tomans." "Iraqi passport:" "One million tomans." "Afghani passport:" "500,000 tomans." "European passport:" "11 million tomans." "American passport:" "26 million tomans." "American green card:" "15 million tomans." "Now, the visas..." "Visa for Iraq:" "100,000 tomans." "Visa for Afghanistan:" "5,000 tomans." "Visa for Europe:" "Five million tomans." "Visa for America:" "12 million tomans." "Military service completion:" "Five million tomans." "What're they based on?" "What's that?" "What are the costs based on?" "The cost of visas is high." "If oil prices go up, the costs go up." "If oil comes down, the costs come down." "Thank God there's not still a war on, or the prices go way up!" "Up, up, up!" "We kid around to cheer ourselves up." "We kid around?" " I like your friends." " Thank you." "Thank you." " They'll be ready in ten days?" " God willing..." "I bring the money and get them?" "Yes." " Don't kiss me!" " It was nice meeting you." " Good-bye." " Good-bye." " Good-bye." " Shut the door!" "Why?" "Ashkan, I'm not too optimistic about this." "You know how much it costs for those passports and visas?" "The money's no problem." "What do you mean?" "I called my mother in Germany." "There's about $24,000 left over from my dad." "She'll transfer it to me in the next couple of days." ""Franz Kafka, Metamorphosis"" "Throwing your headphones again?" "Everything's a mess." "I feel dizzy." "I've written a female vocal backing track." "I don't know where to find another singer." "My mind is half on this whole visa situation." "I don't know what to do." "We don't even know if this guy can actually deliver them." "And we don't know if Nader's for real." "I told you it wouldn't work." "You don't listen to me." "Hello?" " Got your papers?" " Yeah." "Put them in my bag." " The photos aren't ready yet." " The passport photos?" "Oh, no!" "I was wearing a tie in the photo!" "Damn it!" "You can't do that on Iranian passports!" "Look, I'm gonna take you to hear a heavenly voice!" " Whose voice is that?" " Shh." " Who is it?" " Listen." "She's amazing!" "Her singing's incredible!" "Do you know her?" "She's great." "Introduce me to her." "Babak, I'll be right back." "Hi." "Babak, who's that?" "Rana Farhan." "My beloved has become divinely intoxicated" "Look at his eyes" "His speech has grown inebriated" "His tongue has twisted" "He falls, sometimes this way" "Sometimes that way" "These are the symptoms" "Of one who is drunk" "His eyes entrance the intoxicated" "Do not try to make me fear him" "I am drunk and fear not" "The power of his eyes" "Oh, love, I beg of you" "The King of kings has become divinely intoxicated" "Quickly grab his locks" "Pull him forth towards us" "Actually..." "apart from the permit issue, she can really help you." "She has connections abroad." "That's great." " Can you talk to her?" " Yeah." " Really?" " She's very approachable." " Really." " A really great person." "And she's a very famous musician." "It'd be a privilege to have her with you." "She'd look out for you." "She knows this business." "Wow, great!" "To get permits for backing vocalists, talk to her." "But Negar's the only singer we need." "You won't get a permit with just one female singer." "Really?" "I heard something about that." "Ashkan, what do you think of these lyrics for the album?" "Read them." ""As black as the clouds of night," ""as miserable as a day of malady..." ""Night." "Malady." "Blackness." "Misery." "Defenselessness."" "How is it?" " It's pretty dark." " Dark?" " Did you write it in prison?" " Mm-hmm." "You think everything I write is dark!" "Well, it is!" "Night, defenselessness, blackness, misery..." "If we wanna get a permit, we need to sound more cheerful." " I'll get it." " Yes." "Who's this?" "Hello, Nader!" "I'm coming right down." "He got here fast!" "Give me that!" "I was ironing that!" "I'm in a rush." "Watch the food." " Where are you going?" " To see a heavy metal band." "And you?" "Nothing." "I'll go when this is done." "If we go out, I'll pick you up." "Is this where they play?" "No, Aryan works here." "I'll give him a lift;" "you get Negar." "Aryan!" "How are you?" "Tell him to shut that thing off!" "Hey, can you turn that off for a minute, please?" "This is Ashkan." " Hi." " I've heard a lot about you." "I came to give you a lift so we can go see your band together." "You work here?" "Yeah, my dad works here, and I help him out." " It's cool." " Yeah." "Hello, sir." "How are you?" " Do you know where Aryan is?" " Who?" "The guys who came on motorbikes." "Who?" "Where's the music coming from?" "Can you take us?" " The group?" " Yes, the group." "Oh, you want to talk to Afshin?" "Yes." "Where is he?" "We're sick of the noise." "The cows don't give any more milk." "They've stopped eating and drinking." "They've gone crazy." "Instead of cleaning cow shit, we clean up those kids' mess." "Look!" "They're dying of starvation." "They're not eating." "We don't dare clean the cowshed." "It's killing us." "But Afshin's a good kid." "And he's the boss's son." "Don't tell him any of this." "No, of course not." "Guys, meet Ashkan and Negar." "I don't know how they got here." "This place is really out of the way." "Yeah, but our neighbors in town drove us out." "We're okay here with the cows." " Play Fences and Prisons." " It's called No Fences." "Right, that's what I meant." "Okay." "Play something so these guys can hear what you do." "We used to play heavy metal, but we changed." "We softened up the lyrics." "It used to be much heavier, but now we sing in Persian." "It's closer to Iranian culture." "People can relate to it more easily." "You know what our situation is." "We're trying to get a band together so we can leave Iran and play some shows." " But we wanna come back." " Yeah, sure." "Okay." "We'll play something." "If it suits you, we'd be happy to help out." "Okay, let's hear it." "Let's play No Fences." " Can I sit down?" " Yeah." "This is the voice of a man" "Whose hopes" "Don't live in a dead end" "My wild cries" "Tear down the fence" "My words were not criminal" "Though they were hanged" "The fences around your mind cannot contain me" "Open your eyes I'm tired" "There's no room in your cage for me" "Stop your dreaming!" "It's time to wake up!" "Open your eyes, wake up!" "Why are your thoughts so negative?" "On a farm?" "Yes, we go there to rehearse." "This is serious." "All of you must be tested for hepatitis." "I'm not with them!" " You live together?" " Rehearse together." "Give me a piece of paper." "You're crazy, rehearsing in a cowshed!" "If your neighbors kicked you out, you wouldn't have any choice either." "The puppets" "And dollars" "The others" "Would kill you" "Can't notice" "The bullets" "And fires" "Would tell you" "And fathers impostors" "May offer" "Their cars and lies" "Believe it" "We need it to sing" "C)h" "No, give it a kick." "It's still too weak." "It has to match the music." "Okay, put it back on." "Go on, start again." "The puppets" "And dollars" "The others" "Would kill you" "Can't notice" "The bullets" "And fires" "Would tell you" "And fathers" "Let it play all the way through." "I can't get into it if you cut it off in the middle." "Okay." "So let's take the highway." "What?" "Go on the highway and I'll play it once through." "Can't notice" "The bullets" "And fires" "Would tell you" "And fathers impostors" "May offer" "Their cars and lies" "Believe it" "We need it to sing" "C)h" "Believe it" "A love in a plastic life" "Believe it" "We need it to sing" "C)h" "A feeling" "A love in a time line" "So what did they say?" "They emailed us." "There should be at least four songs in English and one in Persian." "We need to write more songs this week." "What about the Persian songs we did?" "We can't do anything with them." "Hi, Koori!" "Hey!" "Hey, how are you?" " Give me a minute." " Okay." " How are you?" " You okay?" "What's up?" "We're waiting for this neighbor to leave." "He used to leave earlier." "When's he going?" "If we rehearse when he's here, he calls the cops." "Seriously?" "Where's Soroosh?" "He's over there." "Soroosh!" "How are you?" "How are you, Sina?" "Doing well?" " Where's Nader?" " He should be here." " He's not." " Were you warming up?" "Yeah, with clothes over the drums to mute the sound." "You couldn't hear anything?" "So?" "He's still not gone." "He's been here for an hour." "This place sucks." "Why did you leave Ekbatan?" "They arrested us three times." "It was three floors underground, you couldn't hear anything, but the police took all our instruments." "We weren't even there." "It was after the concert that they arrested us." " How did you build this?" " It was hard." "Some plaster from there a plank of wood we found in the street..." " It turned out good." " Yeah, we like it." "Koori, I brought you an NME." "Awesome!" "Nader's already read it." "Great!" "He's gone, guys." "Really?" "Let's go!" "New century" "Looks like strawberry" "New century" "New century" "Go to war making energy" "Haagen-Dazs" "Have to make one melt" "There's a mind for sale" "Of course I'm gonna buy nothing" "Haagen-Dazs" "Have to make one melt" "There's a mind for sale" "Of course I'm gonna buy nothing" "Martin" "A German college man ls laughing at a bare head" "Of Dalai Lama" "This is how human race will fall" "This is how human race will fall" "Not again!" "We're screwed." "Is the power off everywhere?" "No, just here." " Must be my dad." " Should I tell him?" "Yeah, all right." "Tell him we'll be 15 minutes." "Your dad's got a problem with your music?" "He's just worried they'll call the cops." "He's been at the police station constantly lately, bailing us out." "I feel really guilty." "Recently, this little kid next door called the police." "It's really funny!" "Every time we start practicing, he gets bored home alone, so he calls the cops." "Power's back on!" "Great!" "Turn on the air conditioning." "We'll suffocate." "It's unbearable." "Your dad said 10 minutes, not 15." "So what about this kid?" "Every time he was home alone, he'd call the cops." "When we went to see him, he just laughed." "He got wise to us." "He's just making fun of us." "We became his playthings." "Instead of toys, he had us and the cops to play with." "You understand?" "By the way, Sina," "I wanted to ask you if we could rehearse here." "Okay, apparently not." "Secondly, we spoke about it last night, but are you sure you don't want to come with us?" "I'd love to, but just with this band," "I barely have enough time in the day to rehearse." "And aside from that, there are other problems I can't discuss." " I can't." "Sorry." " What about Arash?" " He's right, Arash is great." " Which Arash?" "The Free Keys' drummer." "Didn't they split up?" " They re-formed." " How's his drumming?" "Very good." "He's fantastic!" "Koori, what about you?" "I love your music;" "it's like ours." "My only problem is, I don't have a passport." "It costs a lot." "That's no problem." "Nader's on top of it." "Well, in that case, there's no problem." "Like I said." "Wait, you guys, it's Nader!" "Hello?" "Who?" "The police?" "He's just a friend." "No, we're not his clients." " It was the cops." " They caught him?" "I don't know..." "I guess." "Don't worry." "The kind of guy he is, he'll find a way out of it." "Hello, sir, where's Office 36, please?" " To the right and up one floor." " Thank you." "Those movies aren't against Islamic law!" "A few scenes aren't suitable for kids." " Are you mocking me?" " No!" "They found 1,800 films!" "They're for my own personal viewing!" " Don't lie!" " May I burn in hell if I lie!" "On my mother's life!" "Look, those copies don't play properly." "One is pixilated, another cuts out, another gets stuck..." "I even tried to clean them with a sponge!" " You're making it worse." " Sorry." " You're lying to me." " Okay, I'll tell you the truth." "Go ahead." "I swear on the Koran, the movies are mine." "I'm passionate about films and music." "There's nothing objectionable in them." "There are Muslim films, Christ, Moses, Noah..." "All of them..." "Good films." "Some American films." "But since they embargoed Iran," "I've been boycotting American films." "I swear!" "But I have all the great European films!" "I'd like you to see some." "Okay, forget the films." "What about this?" "What about the alcohol?" "May I go to hell if I drink!" "I swear on the Koran!" "I never drink!" "I'm lower than a dog if I drink!" "That's not mine!" "The bottle is sealed!" "I haven't drunk." "Smell!" "Close your mouth!" "Whose is it?" "How can I prove to you I don't drink?" "All right..." "Please, on the life of Imam Hossein, don't give me 80 lashes!" "Tell the truth, I'm getting tired!" "I swear, I have never touched a drop of alcohol." "I have an Armenian friend, a male friend." "Every time I go to his place, he has all kinds of alcohol!" "I bought liquor when he came over." "That's the truth." "I swear on the Koran!" " Not on the Koran!" " On my mother's life!" "Okay." "I'm fining you 1,500,000 and 75 lashes." "Why?" "1,500,000!" "So what if I bootleg films?" "But who am I?" "All I have is not even worth 2,000,000!" "Stop sniveling!" "What am I worth?" "Go on, take everything!" "My house is smaller than this place!" "Where would I come up with that kind of money?" "I'm worth less than a dog in this country!" "I'm trash!" "Where would I find that kind of money?" "So I copy DVDs..." "That'll teach me!" "Find me work then!" "I'll clean your table!" "I'll sweep your floor!" "I'll never break the law again!" "Okay, I'll reduce your fine to 150 tomans." "But if you say one more word, the verdict stands." "You don't have a record." "As it's your first offense," "I'll let you off the lashes too." " Allow me to kiss your feet!" " Get out of here!" " Please, let me kiss your hand!" " Get out!" "I'm your humble servant!" "Next defendant!" "Your reverence, please... just watch those movies again from a different angle." "From a creative, artistic perspective." " If you like them..." " I'll let you know." "Get out of here!" "I'll deliver them to you myself." "Good-bye." "Out!" "I told him: not the music..." "At least he eased up at the end." "What do you mean?" "He wanted to fine me, I had to beg!" "Sweetie!" "Sorry I'm late!" "It's over!" "I like how you told him to find you a job." "He felt so bad, he wanted to pay me!" "Life is expanse" "Of gleaming tech space" "Life can be expanded by dreaming" "Dreaming ls my reality" "Essential problem" "Of mankind" "To believe in" "His life" "Why he fakes" "Any waning gloom of life" "Dreaming ls my reality" "Dreaming ls my" "Dreaming ls my reality" "Dreaming ls my" "You're not worried about getting busted?" "Why worry?" "We're doing nothing wrong, just making music." "We're hurting no one." "Get busted, and you'll go to jail for at least two months." "No, it's safe here." "No need to worry." "You can't hear it outside?" "No, the doors and walls are all soundproofed with blankets." "You can hear it a bit in the yard." "Just be careful about the neighbors when you come in." " You wanna play a show here?" " How can we?" "No problem." "I can get 400 people in here." "150 here..." "There's no room!" "I'll split 'em into two levels." "Guys, girls, following Islamic guidelines." "Here and here." "How's that sound?" "Great." "What do you think?" "But we were supposed to do a bigger concert..." "I'll handle it." "I got connections." "I'll book the venue and get you a permit." "If you play to 400 people, you'll get a good head start." "Agreed?" "Yeah, great." "Okay?" "Can you help these guys out?" "For the concert, sure" "But I have other obligations." "Arash could help out." "Yeah, I'm in." "I'm into indie rock." " Really?" " Yeah." "Just one problem." " What?" " Military service." "That's no problem." "I'll take care of it." "I'm handling the band's passports." "No problem." " How much?" " Don't worry." "The show will make us enough to pay off your military service and the rest." "No worries." "It'll be five or six million" "What?" "But don't worry." "I'll handle it." "Were you serious about the key?" "It won't be a problem later on?" "No, just be really careful at night." "Be very quiet." "Make sure no one sees you coming in." "And when you rehearse, keep it down." "How did you control admissions?" "We only invited our friends." "You made a list?" "No, someone outside brought people in groups of three." " Did you give the address?" " No." "They come, then leave?" "I'll take care of that." " Farin, are you sure?" " Yes." "And don't worry about your military service." "Tonight, if God so desires" "You'll come to my dreams" "So I can tell you a story" "Of these strange days" "I can tell you, oh, gentle soul" "Don't be hard on me" "Listen, guys." "This guy's amazing." "He does voluntary work here." "Listen, he's such a great musician." "So I can tell you a story" "Of these strange days" "I can tell you, oh, gentle soul" "Pretend you're holding a guitar, kids." "Tell you I've gotten lonely" "Turn around and come back home" "The stars in the sky" "Have become so kind tonight" "Look at the moon in the sky" "She's treating me" "What, kids?" "Kind" "Give yourselves a big hand!" "Listen, kids!" "You're going to practice this song twice at home." "15 minutes, take a break, then do it again." "I have to leave a little early today because I have guests." "Mehrad, come here, please!" "The kids are gonna do it in 4/4 time." "Work with them." "See you tomorrow!" " I'm ashamed." " What?" "Ashamed?" "You dragged these guys all the way here." "You know how busy I am." " I work four hours here..." " Four hours." "Four hours with the Iraqi kids..." "That's eight hours." "And three hours with the Afghans" "I worked with before." "That's 11 hours." "The rest of the time, I'm in traffic." "These guys want to get a band together." "I love them like you love those kids." "Did you see how cute that kid in yellow was?" "He moved his head like this." " They're so talented." " They're angels." "And them too." "This kid." "An angel!" "And this one!" "I want them to make it." "Can you help us out?" "I'll do what I can." " But you can't play." " Sorry!" " What about Khosro?" " Yeah, I've heard about him." " Bald-headed Khosro?" " Yeah." " What does he play?" " Drums." "But we have a drummer." "David might not come through." "There are many potential problems." "David won't come through?" "Are you joking?" "We leave in a week!" "I didn't say won't, I said might." "You have to cover the bases." "Khosro does it all:" "he drums, writes songs, has a good voice, plays bass guitar..." "Where is he?" "Last time anyone saw him, he was in the subway." " Doing what?" " Panhandling." "Really?" "Panhandling?" "In the subway?" "Khosro?" " Yes, he sings in dark glasses." " Really?" "Who am I?" "A hobo wandering lost through the streets" "The most unfortunate wretch" "The sound of a voiceless city" "From where?" "The south side..." "Where your breath cannot reach" "Where hopes and dreams" "Get locked up in cages" "I'm stuck at a crossroads" "A tired drifter" "In the middle of a crossroads" "That leads to four dead ends" "I'm stuck at a crossroads" "A tired drifter" "In the middle of a crossroads" "That leads to four dead ends" "Who am I?" "A tramp full of questions without answers" "Hundreds of roads and walls" "In my dreams, I painted them" "Let's see what you did." "I wrote these lyrics." "Let's try them out." "I wrote a riff with these three chords." "Something like this..." "Play that again." "I've been there alone" "Someone's at the door." " Don't open it!" " Why?" "Let me see who it is." "It's Koori!" " Hi." " Hi, how's it going, Koori?" "Nice place!" "I've been there alone" "I've been there with you" "No, not like that." " We should invert it?" " Yes." "Okay, sorry." "I've been there alone" "I've been there with you" "Believe me, out there, there's a jungle" "We can really count on Babak." "We should talk to him about using the studio for free." "Sure, but I don't know." "It gets really crowded here." " Do you know how much it costs?" " No, I'll ask." "Did you get a permit?" "There's no way." "Why not?" "Your music's fine." "I think so too, honestly." "We always abide by two things." "Nothing that goes against society's moral codes and no politics." "We have no fear." "That's just what we believe." "You'll see." "Do you guys use brass and harmonicas?" "Yeah." "I told you about Ashkan, right?" "So do you want to work with us?" "Yeah, absolutely." "But, you know, these things take a lot of planning." "We can't have things falling apart halfway through." " Yeah, sure." " It's an investment." "Don't worry." "We're trying to cover every last detail." "For example, we have a song that would sound really good with wind instruments." "It'd sound great in the background." "No problem." "What do you play?" "Diatonic, chromatic..." "Let's play Tonight, so they can get an impression." "Tonight" "A woman" "Who saw a stranger's smile" "Will be up till morning" "Tonight" "A man" "Who kissed his boss's hand" "Will be up till morning" "Tonight" "A child" "Who smoked his first cigarette" "Will be up till morning" "Nader said if we want a permit, we need at least three female vocalists." "They'll never let a girl sing alone." "Yeah, I've heard that too." "You need female backing singers." "Otherwise, no permit." "We might wait three years for a permit at the Censorship Bureau, like the rest of them." "There are several options." "Either you sing solo, or..." " Pull over!" " What do they want?" " What should I do, Ashkan?" " What do these cops want?" "I don't know." " Roll down your window" " Yes'?" " Roll it down." " What?" " All the way down!" " What is it, sir?" "Tell her to roll it down." "What's in the car with you?" "All right!" " I said roll it down!" " All right!" " What's the problem?" " What's that?" "A dog." "What's wrong?" "I can see it's a dog." "It's illegal to have dogs outside!" "It's filthy, brother!" "This isn't one of those dogs." "He's clean, he's been vaccinated!" "He has a German ID!" "Give it to me!" " Give me the dog!" " All right!" "Wait a minute!" "We've not..." "Come on, higher." " Don't do that!" "Officer!" " Where are you taking him?" "Ashkan, what do I do?" "His cell phone's off." "Really?" "It's been off for two days now." "Did you give him the third installment?" " I gave it to him yesterday." " I was there." "So what are we supposed to do?" "I gave it to him yesterday!" "He's conning us, don't you get it?" "Hurry up, guys!" "We're done for if this doesn't work out." "What are we to do?" "We've spent all this money, paid for studio time, records..." "And for what?" "He said he'd show us one of the passports." "Well, where is it?" " Ashkan!" " Negar!" "He's a good guy." "It's no problem." "Please! "No problem"!" "You sound like him." "He's always saying that!" "He changes from one day to the next." ""Money on time." "Mash David on time." "Don't worry." "No problem."" "With his lousy English!" "He's a total joke." " What did you say?" " Nader!" "Don't "Nader" me!" "Talking behind my back?" "I can't speak English?" "Any New Yorker would think I was from there." "Are you crazy, huh?" "So what if I wanna speak English?" "It's none of your business." "It's none of your business." "Yesterday I tried to find you some female vocalists." "I don't want to scare you, but if they don't give you a permit..." " What?" " If!" "I said if!" "I'll organize a concert to raise money for the trip." "Tonight, I'm taking you to a private concert by two sisters." "You'll see how they make a living." "Why are we here?" "Because they already have visas and passports." "They'll be able to help you." "You see David over there?" "The heavy heart of the lover" "And the curls of the beloved's locks" "The King's face at the foot of his handsome servant" "The truth is manifest" "The door of the tavern is open" "Long is the tale" "The secret of which we speak not to others" "We share with our lover for he is our confidante" "Ashkan, David has helped Hamed get out of the country." " Wow, really?" " I just spoke to him." "Ashkan." "Open up, it's me." "Did anybody see you?" "No, I came from the rooftop." " Are you sure?" " Yes, everyone's asleep." "Your dad won't turn up again?" "No, he's asleep!" "It's okay, come in." "How are you?" "Not so good!" "I have a really bad feeling about all this." "It won't work out." "Let's forget about the album." "It's not that important." "Come and sit here with me." "Come on, hurry up." "You're late!" " There was traffic!" " Not here." "Come on, I brought you here for three reasons." "This musician has a passport, a visa and a permit." "I went to London with him myself." "I know London like the back of my hand." "I'm going to bring 10,000 people here to watch you play." "We'll make enough money to pay David off." "A good-for-nothing biker will play some music for you." "He looks like Marlon Brando." "Don't underestimate him!" "I know London like the back of my hand." "If you want to take me with you, that's great!" "Don't forget me, please." "Call me and I'll be your number one agent." "Meet my friends, Negar and Ashkan." "Here are the kings of world music!" "They'll be a huge international hit." "Your sorrow has darkened like the blackest hair" "I want to climb the highest peak and drink red wine" "But someone is up there waiting to imprison me" "The color of henna is fading from my hands" "Come and bestow color upon my hands" "Bestow color upon my hands" "Bestow color upon my hands and feet" "Bestow color to soothe my heart" "Bestow color upon my hands" "Bestow color upon my hands and feet" "I want to climb the highest peak and drink red wine" "But someone is up there waiting to imprison me" "Come and bestow color upon my hands" "Bestow color upon my hands and feet" "Hello, sir." "Shoo!" "Shoo!" "No, sorry, I was talking to a dog." "They won't issue a permit?" "Why?" "Do you want to drive these guys out of the country?" "Do you want money?" "My blood?" "Just say the word!" "Why can't you give it to them?" "You've refused them a permit." "Is their music anti-Islamic?" "Immoral?" "You're driving them away!" "That's great, well done!" "What's wrong, Ashkan?" "You want to sell your instruments?" "No way!" "Your instrument is your baby." "They won't give you the permits, but don't tell Negar." "Save your energy for the concert." "I have to go now." "Call you later." "Bye." "Hang on a minute." "Hang on." "I'll be right back." " Hey, bro!" " Yo, man, what's up?" " You're a king!" " Thanks." "I'm out of breath from climbing up here!" "We came up here to shoot a video." "To check out the streets from above." "To show 'em that this is Tehran!" "Know what I'm saying?" ""A city where everything you see entices you!"" "We came up here so we can scream, wake up the city, all these buildings." "If we sing underground, the sound won't go past the floor." "We used to sleep on these streets." "We grew up here." "Everything is here!" "Our work..." "Our lives, our romances, our friendships" "I swear, there's no other place to be, bro." "What we do..." "What's it called?" "Persian rap." "Right?" "That means it's for right here." " So are you coming or not?" " No." "Abroad, on the other side of the water, there's no way out, 'cause what we have to say is for the heart of this city." "Well, the kids are going to London." "I've been helping them out." "They might not make it, so they told me to talk to the best rappers." "Not "rapper," "rap kon."" ""Rap kon!" Right on!" "There's just no way" " And if there was?" " We'd make it happen." "I won't take up your time." "Are you sticking around?" "We're gonna finish shooting before it gets dark." "You do your thing" "I'll do some business and come back." "See you later." "Sure thing." " Say hi to everyone." " Okay." "Just think it over, bro." "I will, but the answer's no!" "Take care of yourself, bro." "You too." "Take it easy." "Okay, let's go." "This is Tehran" "A city where everything you see entices you" "Entices your soul till you realize" "You're not human, just trash" "Everyone's a wolf, wanna run like a sheep?" "Let me open your eyes and ears" "This is Tehran it's no joke" "No sign of flowers or popsicles" "This is a jungle, eat or be eaten" "Half the people are hung up half savages" "The class struggle is oppressive" "It saps people's spirits" "Everyone takes a taxi and refuses to pay" "The truth is clear, don't go that route" "I'll make it clearer so sit still" "God, wake up!" "I have things to say" "Don't get mad at what I've done" "What part?" "I've just begun" "God, wake up, I'm trash!" "A hobo stands next to a Benz" "He isn't worth enough to rent it" "Me, you, him came from a single drop" "Look at the gap between us" "It's not gravity that makes the world spin" "Money makes the world go round" "Today, it's money first, God second" "For everyone, peasant or boss" "A kid wants to play with an orphan, dad says no" "His dirty clothes are all he has" "We're all aware of these troubles" "But even angels won't come here" "Till we've been destroyed by these troubles" "We don't want help, the tears fall" "The disgusted soul knows what I mean" "I'm not done talking, come back" "God, wake up and listen" "Don't get mad at what I've done" "What part?" "I've just begun" "God, wake up, I'm trash!" "Have you ever loved a girl?" "I'll teach you a thing or two" "You think this love is historic" "But your girl's seeing a rich kid" "It's okay, forget it" "Forget everyone around you" "A kid your age with a car, God laughs" "You wish in vain" ""I wanna be rich, be rid of this complex"" "Stop wishing, it's no use" "Wanna sleep?" "Look at these nightmares" "Let's curse this world together" "You're blind not to see vanity all around" "Poverty and prostitution on the street" "God, wake up, I'm trash!" "How do you make your money?" "Hello, Mr. Ahmad, how are you?" "I wanna sell this." "Where's Mohammed?" "Upstairs." "Hello." "Stew!" "Stew!" "As long as there's stew, there's no problem." "Stop the "no problems." You sound like Nader." "22, 23, 24..." "Whatever happens, we'll at least find a manager or a producer." "That shouldn't be so important for us." "The main thing is, we'll be together, playing music." "Worst comes to worst, we'll play on street corners." "No way!" "A street corner's not too bad." "Some good will come of it." "I'm optimistic about it." "I've got a good feeling." "All I want is a Rickenbacker." "Yeah, dude, a new bass." "I want a Rickenbacker and an island with blue skies where I can play music all day without anyone bugging me." "And a cook." "Stew in the morning, stew and ghorme sabzi for lunch, stew, ghorme sabzi and fesenjoon for dinner." "Get outta here with your greedy wishes." "What about you, Arash?" "Whatsit you do if we make it?" "I want a room with great acoustics and a Ludwig drum kit." "And a couple of amazing drummers:" "Bill Bruford and Danny Carey." "And I'd have a fridge full of energy drinks, so I can just drink, drum, drink..." " Great." " How 'bout you, Negar?" "Nothing." "Just those passports..." "No problem there!" "If that's your wish, there's no problem!" "I have three wishes." "First, the passports." "Second, to go away with Negar on a big tour of lots of different countries." "And then," "I want to go to Iceland and see Sigur Ros." "That'd be my dream." "Move along." "Come here, mister." "Who is it?" "Out of the way!" "Don't take me away!" "I've been there alone" "I've been there with you" "Believe me, out there, there's a jungle" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "People all looking for a way to survive" "But we are just looking for a shortcut" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "Nobody knows me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody feels me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody knows me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody needs me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Human jungle" "Rules our lives" "Say hello" "To a bitter life" "No way out" "No way out" "No way out" "Nobody knows me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody feels me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody knows me" "Oh-oh, oh" "Nobody needs me" "Oh-oh, oh" "I've been there alone" "I've been there with you" "Believe me, out there, there's a jungle" "Together or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "Together" "Or alone" "We've got bigger problems, Babak." "We have a concert tomorrow night." "We haven't heard from Nader in three days." "His cell phone's off." "He hasn't called us once!" "We leave in three days, and we've got nothing." "No passport, no visa, nothing!" "Excuse me." "You wanted to play in Iran before we left so your parents could see you play." "We could've just played over there." "Guys, take it easy." "What's the problem?" "I introduced him to you." "He's a man of his word." "Sometimes he disappears for a few days." "That's the nature of his job." "These guys know what he's like." "He disappears sometimes..." "It's just his job." "The other day, he left without saying a word." "If he says he'll do something, he'll do it." "I went to his house this morning to leave him a note." "No problem, I'll take care of it." "Koori, where were you, you jerk?" "At the print shop, glued to the photocopy machine!" "All right, let's see what you came up with!" "But look how good they turned out!" "The tickets!" "What did I do to you that you treat me so cruel?" "You're the ground, I'm the rain" "You're the spring, I'm the morning dew" "May you be forever smiling so that sorrow burns at the roots" "If I can't see you again, this fear will never leave me" "I won't be able to pick fruit from your body and spirit's branches" "We figured we could avoid turning on any lights." "I bought 200 candles." "We can give one to each person." "It's better." "That'll be depressing." "No, it won't." "We don't need any spotlights or smoke boxes, dancing with light." "Candles are better." "How are you?" "Nader!" "You guys, they found Nader!" "Okay, so where is he?" "What party?" "When?" "That's when we're playing!" "No, Babak, I'll go!" "Just come and fill in for me here." "I'll go." "Where is it?" "This must be it." "Please be careful." "I'm really scared." " What of?" " I couldn't sleep last night." "I kept having nightmares." "I'll be right back." " Hurry, okay?" " All right." " Yes?" " I'm one of the homeless kids." "Excuse me, do you know Nader?" "Nader the bootlegger?" "Upstairs." " Where?" " Two floors up." " Do you know Nader?" " No." "Do you know Nader?" "Nader?" "Yeah, he's wasted somewhere upstairs." "Sorry." "Nader?" "We've gotta go." "Negar's waiting downstairs." "Come on, get up." "What's wrong?" "Are you stoned?" "Come on." "You need to throw up." "Get up, let's go." "Why did you drink that shit?" "Why did you do it?" "Come on, sit up." "Why are you crying?" "It's all over!" "Everything's fine, Nader." "The money's all set;" "my mother sent it to me." "There's no problem." " Oh, no!" " We've got eight plane tickets." "No!" "I'm sorry, I screwed up..." "What are you sorry for?" "Come on, everything's cool." "Why are you crying?" "It's nothing." "Quiet down for a minute, please." "Ashkan and Negar are running late." "We'll play some songs for you in the meantime." "Why are you degrading yourself?" "The cops are here!" "Come On, get up!" "Hurry!" "Come on, Nader!" "Please, I'm begging you!" "I want to walk with you" "Down the foggy streets" "To the land of evergreen" "I want a home with you" "I want a home with a window" "To the sea" "I want a tree on a porch" "And a swing" "I want a big chair" "For us to sit" "And watch the crappy shows" "On the TV" "I want a bed to rest my head" "To sleep" "Till the sun" "Comes" "Out" "Comes" "Out" "Comes" "Out" "Again" "I want a glass full of joy" "And a plate full of food" "I want a clock with hands" "That don't move" "Every dab'" "Will be today" "And tomorrow ls no" "Fear"