A Separation wins BBC Four World Cinema Award 2011

MUMBAI: A Separation (Jodaeiye Nader az Simin), a drama telling the story of the break up of a marriage and its consequences has been named the winner of the BBC Four World Cinema Award 2011.

It beat out ?Of Gods and Men?; ?The Skin I Live In?; ?Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives? and ?Le Quattro Volte? (The Four Times).

Executive producer Negar Eskandarfar collected the award at a ceremony held at the BFI Southbank as Iranian director Asghar Farhadi was unable to attend the awards ceremony in person.

On receiving the award Eskandarfar said, "I am happy that A Separation was able to attract a large audience in Iran and that it was also welcomed internationally. I am most grateful to those who have sponsored and helped this programme."

BBC commissioning editor Arts Mark Bell said, "A Separation has won plaudits from critics and filmgoers the world over. The judges debated hotly, but this emerged as the clear winner of the BBC Four World Cinema Award 2011, which celebrates excellence in international film making and underlines BBC Four?s commitment to world cinema."

The film is set at the heart of Iranian society. After 14 years of marriage Simin and Nader want to separate and when his wife leaves him, Nader hires a young woman to take care of his suffering father. But what he doesn?t know is his new maid is not only pregnant, but also working without her unstable husband?s permission. Soon Nader finds himself entangled in a web of lies, manipulation and public confrontations.

The other major prize of the evening, the BBC Four World Cinema Achievement Award, was presented to French actress Isabelle Huppert by John Hurt.