Somewhere to Be

More than a year after fleeing Iran, young filmmaker Sara Fattahi faces a great void. Where could that feeling come from, as if some part of her is missing? She reaches for her phone to find answers.

Somewhere to Be shows only a vertical phone screen. It’s a striking and clever choice, since smartphones often hold the entire record of our lives. However, when Sara uses her phone to look for the friends with whom she used to study, make music, join demonstrations and go on secret camping trips, the source of her unease comes into clear focus—through the deleted posts and entire profiles taken offline.

Just like her friends, Sara has become invisible. It is as if she never existed. With striking simplicity, this film shows the far-reaching effects of state repression.