“Sonita” Tells Story of Afghan Refugee In Iran Who Dreams Of Becoming A Rapper

Sonita Alidazeh, left, subject of the documentary film “Sonita,” and the film’s director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami accept the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize for the German/Iranian/Swiss film during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Awards.
Sonita Alidazeh, left, subject of the documentary film "Sonita," and the film's director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami accept the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize for the German/Iranian/Swiss film during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Awards. Chris Pizzello / Invision/AP
Sonita Alidazeh, left, subject of the documentary film “Sonita,” and the film’s director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami accept the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize for the German/Iranian/Swiss film during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Awards.
Sonita Alidazeh, left, subject of the documentary film "Sonita," and the film's director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami accept the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize for the German/Iranian/Swiss film during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Awards. Chris Pizzello / Invision/AP

“Sonita” Tells Story of Afghan Refugee In Iran Who Dreams Of Becoming A Rapper

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The documentary feature, Sonita, tells the story of Sonita Alizadeh, an 18 year-old Afghan refugee in Iran who wants to become a rapper and hip-hop artist. But to make her dream come true, she must fight against her conservative family and Iranian laws that prevent women from singing in public.

WBEZ Film Contributor, Milos Stehlik of Facets Multimedia talks with Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami, a filmmaker and director of Sonita. 

The film is her first documentary feature and won both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize at the 2015 Sundance World Cinema Documentary Competition. Sonita runs Saturday, April 2, 2016 at the Music Box Theatre as Part of the “DOC 10” documentary film festival.