STEM CELL with English subtitles
Centre Culturel Kabir presents

STEM CELL with English subtitles

Virtual Event
From November 19th to 28th 2021
12:00 am – 12:00 am (EST)
For more information about this event, please contact Centre Culturel Kabir at info@centrekabir.com.

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Stem Cell II is Shahin Parhami’s artistic perspective on the isolated hospital experience after his diagnosis and treatment of a rare and aggressive type of cancer during the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

“In May 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, I was diagnosed with plasma cell leukemia, a rare and aggressive type of cancer. This short film is my perspective, as a filmmaker, of the hospital experience in the aftermath of my two stem-cell transplants to treat the disease when I was recovering in a special isolation ward in Montreal, Canada. I had a choice between undergoing this procedure or going into palliative care. So, this was my last chance for remission. I am an artist who has worked in experimental and creative documentary cinema for the past 30 years.”

 

“This short film was shot entirely on a mobile phone and edited on a laptop in the hospital during the recuperation period, whenever I found the energy to work on this project. This film gives you an impression of the patient’s experience during their stay in the cold institutional environment, without the comfort of friends and visitors, in complete solitude, save for the presence of healthcare workers and the ubiquitous machines in the space.”

 

“The sonic design consists of available environmental sounds I recorded alongside the images, layered with experimental ambient music composed by a friend. We also hear the doctor’s voiceover describing the stem cell transplant, accompanied by images of the invasive treatment regime from the unique vantage point of the patient—the constant injections, stem-cell extractions, blood transfusions, heavy chemotherapy, and so on. These are aestheticized visuals of procedures that most have never witnessed, especially the Covid pandemic when limited hospital access. Starting with the sight of winter snowfall, as seen from the window of the patient’s room, the film ends with lyrical images of light striating the space, and the sun rising at dawn, offering a sentiment of hope.”

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Stem Cell II is Shahin Parhami’s artistic perspective on the isolated hospital experience after his diagnosis and treatment of a rare and aggressive type of cancer during the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

“In May 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, I was diagnosed with plasma cell leukemia, a rare and aggressive type of cancer. This short film is my perspective, as a filmmaker, of the hospital experience in the aftermath of my two stem-cell transplants to treat the disease when I was recovering in a special isolation ward in Montreal, Canada. I had a choice between undergoing this procedure or going into palliative care. So, this was my last chance for remission. I am an artist who has worked in experimental and creative documentary cinema for the past 30 years.”

 

“This short film was shot entirely on a mobile phone and edited on a laptop in the hospital during the recuperation period, whenever I found the energy to work on this project. This film gives you an impression of the patient’s experience during their stay in the cold institutional environment, without the comfort of friends and visitors, in complete solitude, save for the presence of healthcare workers and the ubiquitous machines in the space.”

 

“The sonic design consists of available environmental sounds I recorded alongside the images, layered with experimental ambient music composed by a friend. We also hear the doctor’s voiceover describing the stem cell transplant, accompanied by images of the invasive treatment regime from the unique vantage point of the patient—the constant injections, stem-cell extractions, blood transfusions, heavy chemotherapy, and so on. These are aestheticized visuals of procedures that most have never witnessed, especially the Covid pandemic when limited hospital access. Starting with the sight of winter snowfall, as seen from the window of the patient’s room, the film ends with lyrical images of light striating the space, and the sun rising at dawn, offering a sentiment of hope.”


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