Pastiche video created for the title track of Max LL's new album Golestan: hyperurl.co/golestan

This experimental film combines archive footage from the past 60 years with images captured while in Iran in 2014. The poem that is spoken throughout is about finding beauty and satisfaction in life no matter the hardships you endure (see below).

Directed & Edited by Maude Plante-Husaruk
Narrated by Sally
Archive footage from the Prelinger Archives
Videoscope effect by Simon Garrett
Music by Max LL

“For the title track Golestan, I wanted to write music that embodied the beauty and richness of Iranian culture, the kindness and impassioned nature of the people and their resilience in facing the hardship and challenges the country had to go through in the past half century." - Max LL

We’d like to thank all the amazing people that inspired us along our journey: Narges, Shahab, Reza, Nahid, Zoya, Arash, Parinaz, Parham, Sana, Maryam, Hamid, Nastaran, Keivan, Sally, Saughar & Amir, Nahid & Amin, Shiva, Zahra, Vahid, Amir, Eva, Klaus, Felix & Christina, Khayrina, Lalmo & Mona.

Golestan (Persian: گلستان‎ Golestȃn "The Flower Garden", "Land of Flowers")

The words that are spoken throughout the video are from a nameless Hafez poem and could be translated from Farsi as:

"To me a rose-tinted cheek from flower garden of the world is enough;
From this meadow the shade of that flying cypress is enough;
May I and the company of the deceitful folk be far!
Of all earth's treasures a cup of wine to me is enough;
The palace of paradise for good deeds is bestowed,
To me, drunken and a beggar, the cloister of Magians is enough;
Sit beside the brook and watch the passage of life,
To me the image of passage of life to watch is enough;
Look for the cash in this world and the pain,
If these don't satisfy you, to me the profit and loss is enough;
The darling is with me, why should I desire more?
The pleasure of discourse with my dear darling is enough;
For God's sake send me not to paradise from your door,
For in this world the head of your street to me is enough;
Hafiz! it is unfair to complain about the watery flow of fate,
The nature like water, and moving gazelles to you is enough;"