EXAM is an Iranian short, directed by Sonia K. Hadad, about a schoolgirl who is given a ‘package’ to drop off before an important exam.

This film was a snapshot into the treatment of young women in Iranian society. The short is initially domestic, presenting a school girl concerned with academic pressures and anxiety about being late for school. However, she needs to perform a drug drop before she can go to class, and the person who was supposed to pick up the drugs doesn’t arrive, forcing her to take the drugs to school in order to not miss her exam.

The tension of the film does not come from the illegal activity itself; rather it is the fear of discovery from the extremely strict school mistresses. The film shows that even were the school girl not involved in such activity, she would still have very real reason to fear discovery of any kind from these authority figures. The short does an excellent job balancing the banal fear of being exposed by a teacher of wrong doing with a deeper criticism of the lack of freedom young women face both in their personal lives and in their relationship with the system.

The short is well worth watching for its tense atmosphere and excellent acting, and for the marginalised perspective it offers its audience.