Synopsis
Tonight’s Homework is an independent documentary inspired by Abbas Kiarostami’s film (Mashgh-e Shab). Beyond exploring the original intent behind Kiarostami’s work, the film examines the motivations of today’s students, as well as the challenges, issues, and dilemmas they face within the educational system—aspects that have largely remained overlooked by society.
مشق امشب، مستند مستقلی است كه با نگاهی به فيلم مشق شب عباس كيارستمی ساخته شده که علاوه بر تحقيق در مورد رسالتی كه جناب كيارستمی در نظر داشت، به انگيزه‌های دانش آموزان امروز، چالش‌ها و مسائل و معضلاتی كه در نظام آموزشی پيش رو دارند و از نگاه جامعه دور مانده، پرداخته شده است.
Introduction & Premise
Decades after master auteur Abbas Kiarostami unveiled his groundbreaking 1989 documentary Homework (Mashgh-e Shab), filmmakers Ashkan Nejati and Mehran Nematollahi deliver a compelling contemporary spiritual sequel with Tonight’s Homework (Mashghe Emshab). Releasing on October 19, 2026, this independent Iranian social documentary bridges cinema history with urgent contemporary research, examining whether the burdens placed on young students have truly evolved or merely transformed under modern pressures.
Plot & Themes
In Tonight’s Homework, the directors recreate Kiarostami’s intimate setup, placing today’s elementary and middle school students in front of a camera to answer simple yet revealing questions about their lives. Beyond exploring Kiarostami’s original sociological intent, Nejati and Nematollahi expand the canvas to capture aspects of childhood that society frequently overlooks. Through frank conversations with students, parents, and educators across diverse economic backgrounds, the documentary brings several key themes to light:
- Educational Anxiety: The overwhelming psychological strain produced by traditional rote learning and competitive school structures.
- Socio-Economic Stratification: The glaring divide in resources and mental well-being between students in underfunded public schools and affluent private institutions.
- Shifting Aspirations: How digital media, economic instability, and changing family dynamics have altered children’s views on success and the future.
Creative Vision & Direction
Co-directors Ashkan Nejati and Mehran Nematollahi exercise impressive stylistic discipline. Utilizing a stripped-back, direct-address interviewing technique, the directors grant young subjects the space to speak candidly without adult condensation. The visual framing mirrors the minimalist elegance of classic Iranian non-fiction cinema, relying on subtle body language, sudden silences, and unfiltered emotional shifts to deliver a poignant critique of systemic educational oversights.
Production Background
Conceived as both a scholarly homage and a standalone social investigation, Mashghe Emshab was developed through extensive fieldwork across Iranian schools. The independent production team meticulously cross-referenced Kiarostami’s archival observations with current pedagogical realities, ensuring the project serves as a precise socio-cultural marker for 2020s Iranian society.
Why It’s Worth Watching
For cinephiles and documentary enthusiasts alike, Tonight’s Homework is a remarkably insightful piece of non-fiction filmmaking. It avoids simple nostalgia, choosing instead to engage in a rigorous, deeply human cinematic dialogue with one of world cinema’s greatest masterworks.
- Cinematic Lineage: Provides an essential companion piece to Abbas Kiarostami’s legacy, offering a fascinating look at how Iranian childhood has changed over three decades.
- Unscripted Authenticity: Delivers raw, hilarious, and heartbreaking
