Review: The Friend’s House Is Here – A Secretly Filmed Portrait of Underground Artists in Tehran at Sundance

The Guardian reviews ‘The Friend’s House Is Here’, a new film premiering at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, directed by Maryam Ataei and Hossein Keshavarz. The movie offers an intimate, slice-of-life look at Tehran’s underground creative scene, focusing on a group of real-life artists—including actors, dancers, and dramatists—who operate without government permits under Iran’s strict theocratic regime, where artistic expression faces constant risk of censorship, fines, arrest, or worse. Shot guerrilla-style with limited takes to evade authorities, the film was smuggled out during an internet blackout amid protests. It centers on the deep friendship between two women: Pari, a gallerist and underground dramatist, and Hanna, a dancer awaiting a visa abroad. Their bond is shown through casual, elliptical vignettes of daily life, rehearsals, and small acts of defiance like mocking hijab enforcers. The relaxed, hangout-style pacing reflects the characters’ limbo under oppression, punctuated by motifs of surveillance and disorientation. A sudden arrest shifts the tone, raising questions about staying or leaving. Rather than overt political drama, the film emphasizes everyday resistance, community, care, and creative joy among the margins. The review praises its optimism and authenticity, noting bittersweet context from ongoing repression in Iran, including recent violence against protesters and an actor injured by authorities. The cast could not attend Sundance due to visa issues, underscoring the film’s brave circumstances.