In 1992 a young Iranian student hanged himself from a tree on the outskirts of a small Ontario town. He had escaped the Ayatollahs' regime, but he could not escape his past.

News of the young stranger's death hit home with filmmaker Masoud Raouf. He too is part of the generation of Iranians who rose up against the Shah's despotic rule - only to be cruelly persecuted by an equally murderous new regime.

The Tree that Remembers is his compassionate reflection on the betrayal of the 1979 Iranian revolution and the tenacity of the human spirit.

Raouf assembles a group of Iranians - all former political prisoners like himself who were active in the democratic movement. Blending their testimony with historical footage and original artwork, Raouf honours the memory of the dead and celebrates the resilience of the living.

Shekoufeh, petite and soft-spoken, spent eight years in jail, confined for months on end in a coffin-like box. Reza, now a professor of economics, has written about his imprisonment in Weeping Tulips. Firouzeh was separated from her family for years, following a 10-minute trial before a group of fundamentalist clerics.

Ex-political prisoners who have gone through this experience build walls around themselves, says Farzad. Their eyes have been opened to the capability of all mankind to inflict such evil. And this intuitive sensitivity remains in them.

Framing these accounts are scenes from Iran's recent past. The cruel ironies of history are startling in 1979 footage of International Women's Day. Enthusiastic crowds of women take to the streets of Tehran, young and old, walking arm-in-arm towards a better tomorrow. Having helped to topple the brutal regime that had come to power in the 1953 CIA-backed coup, they are buoyant with victory and hope. A new day is dawning. How can they foresee the dark age about to engulf them?

Throughout Raouf uses his own animated artwork to create an imagined sanctuary, shimmering

2002, 50 min 19 s

L'arbre qui se souvient

Award of Commendation
American Anthropological Association
November 19 to 22 2003, Chicago - USA

Bronze Plaque Award - Category: Social Issues
International Film and Video Festival
November 1 2003, Columbus - USA

Bronze Plaque Award - Category: Social Issues
International Film and Video Festival
October 23 to 25 2002, Columbus - USA

Golden Sheaf Award - Category: Best Documentary Social
Golden Sheaf Awards / Short Film and Video Festival
May 23 to 26 2002, Yorkton - Canada

Silver Award for Best Canadian Documentary - with a cash prize 5,000$
Hot Docs
April 26 to May 5 2002, Toronto - Canada