Mutual Pain (2025) /
Mutual Pain is a 30-minute, nonlinear, psychodrama film about love's pain, social violence, and the effect of anxiety on perception.
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John's world shatters upon uncovering a devastating secret about his wife. Fleeing into the chaotic city's dark underbelly, where reality and dream blur, he faces a choice that will redefine his future and deepest bonds.
What is this movie about: At its core, it is about self-confrontation and self-perception. How do we construct identity? How do love, loss, and memory shape the way we see the world? The protagonist moves through a fragmented reality, where time bends and memories bleed into the present, drifting between love and alienation.
I wanted to strip away barriers between film, dance, and theater, particularly through editing. I sought to create something immersive, where movement and rhythm guide emotion as much as dialogue. Editing became a form of choreography, shaping the film’s pulse and flow.
I want the audience to feel lost within the film, experiencing the protagonist’s disorientation. I hope they feel the weight of time, the ache of memory, and the uncertainty of perception. Mutual Pain is not about finding clear answers but embracing the questions that remain.
CREDITS
Writer, director, producer and editor Alireza Keymanesh
Production of 33Project
Cinematographer Mathieu Gauvreau
Music Peter Pirhosseinloo
Cast Alireza Keymanesh, Christina Dovolis, Andy Manktelow, Peter Howei, Devin Shears, Terry Jones, Zachary Lacosse, Ali Abdi, Yuula Benivolski, Avin Davalnou, Afsoon Afshar, Maria Kravchenkov, Tavis Putnam