In 1988, Abdul Ahad Momand became the first, and only, Afghan cosmonaut in space and made Pashto the fourth language ever spoken beyond Earth. And his space adventure became a fleeting moment of hope just as Afghanistan descended into civil war, forcing millions of his countrymen and countrywomen into exile.
The memory of the space voyage has since been overshadowed by narratives of conflict, war and diaspora. London-based Afghan filmmaker and actor Elham Ehsas (There Will Come Soft Rains, Yellow, Our Kind of Love) is now bringing the world a cinematic reminder of the space adventure in the context of his country’s history in the short film Forgotten Spaceman, which will world premiere on Aug. 9 in the Pardi di Domani – Concorso Internazionale short and medium-length selection of the 79th edition of the Locarno Film Festival.
After that, the film will screen in the Toronto International Film Festival’s Short Cuts program, organizers unveiled on Wednesday.
Blending documentary and essayistic elements, Forgotten Spaceman “playfully links a historical event and a familiar common feeling: the experience of diaspora, the shadows of colonialism, and the memory of a fractured and silenced nation,” notes a synopsis. And the filmmaker uses a surprising connection to the cosmonaut to explore their shared experience of exile.
Written, directed and edited by Ehsas, Forgotten Spaceman was executive produced by Catherine Tschaepe and Jack Thomas-O’Brien of Ken Loach’s Sixteen Films, which backed the film.
“When I first learned that an Afghan had been to space, I didn’t believe it,” Ehsas says in a director’s statement. “Afghanistan’s stories are always told through war, so discovering that in 1988 Abdul Ahad Momand was orbiting Earth was a shock. What surprised me most was how easily his story disappeared, and how much colonialism has damaged our collective memory, leaving little room for stories that do not fit the narrative of destruction.”
A trailer for the film is now available, and THR can exclusively premiere it below. So, fasten your – whatever seatbelts for spacecraft are called – and get ready to discover what the Locarno website describes as “a film about diaspora, home and the stars.” You may even want to make yourself a cup of Afghan tea, which the country’s sole man in space brewed during a visit to the Mir space station for his crew.
Just don’t miss your chance to explore the world of Forgotten Spaceman. The countdown is on. 3, 2, 1… trailer!
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