Awards & Jury statements

*Nominee, Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject **

Cinema Eye Honors 2022

*Winner, Outstanding Nonfiction Short

Full Frame Documentary Film Festival

* Jury Award, Best Short

“The jury honors a film that exemplifies the power and beauty of observational filmmaking. Deeply situated and attentively witnessed, Three Songs for Benazir is a concisely constructed character study that also implicitly evokes structural, societal, psychological, and political realities—centered in a camp in Kabul yet echoing far beyond—without need for exposition or over-emphasis. The specifics of Shaista’s struggle, the totality of his confinement, are clearly and evocatively conveyed through an elliptical structure, and extended to an expertly edited finale that haunted us and kept us talking long after the film had ended.”

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival

*Audience Award

Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival

*Award of Excellence

"Without a single unnecessary shot, the shortness of this film feels as ephemeral as a half-life in a domestic refugee camp with no freedom, and we could not look away, even for a moment. The young protagonist who makes bricks dreams of one day entering the army. His songs and displays of affection towards his wife are pure. His behavior is juvenile and sometimes perilous, but the camera eye that captures the loving couple is surprisingly warm and beautiful. We'd like to send our heartfelt admiration for this jewel of a film that is the product of a long term commitment to people living in Afghanistan."

Odense Film Festival

* Soapbox Award

"The film reminded us about humanity itself and about the grim consequences of war on real, lived lives. It did so, because we could feel them under our own skin, having met them on screen. This is the power of true documentary filmmaking. It opens our minds by opening our hearts, and makes us see something for the first time, or in a new, or renewed, light. This should be seen and heard by the entire world, and we couldn't find a more worthy winner of this year's Soapbox Award."

Middle East Now

*OFF Cinema 2021 Award

*Opening Night Film

“Based on rare access, this film offers an intimate and disarming view of life, of dreams, of aspirations and the forced choices of a young Afghan family who find themselves in a camp for Internally Displaced Persons in Kabul. Filmed over many years, the unexpected developments of the story go far beyond the personal narrative, bringing to the screen a drama of (inter)national dimensions, without losing sight of the private and subjective vision of the protagonist"

Minimalen Short Film Festival

*Best International Film

“An exquisitely realized, nuanced portrait of a young husband and wife as they embark on their life’s journey together amidst perhaps insurmountable obstacles. It delicately balances attention to the sweet, intimate details of the couple’s private moments together with the no-less powerful and unrelenting realities outside.”

Kraljevski Film Festival

*Grand Prix

“This unusual documentary offers us one different reality of modern Afghanistan. An outstanding director's approach disputes the classic perception of Afghanistan. We are fast attachment to two main protagonists who love, rejoice and seek their place in a constantly unstable area that contributes to the weight of the end of the film.”

Winter Apricots International Film Festival

*Best Film

“It would be understandable to feel despair. The ‘War on Terror’ means by now the death of nearly 930 000 people directly as a result of combat operations, almost 400 000 of them civilians. Yet, this film invites us into the intimacy of two characters who are seeking meaning, who love and rejoice in a country devastated by war. A celebration of life amid desolation. For its humanism and powerful storytelling, through its simplicity and warmth, the prize for Best Film goes to ‘Three songs for Benazir’ by Gulistan and Elizabeth Mirzaei”

Blue Danube Film Festival

*Special Jury Award

“The tragedy of the Afghan crisis in the fate of a young family. This fateful documentary tells the effect of the practically incomprehensible internal situation of the country on everyday life through several years, grasping the essence of the events so directly that the camera doesn’t even seem to be a part of the characters’ lives.” 

Social Impact Media Awards (SIMA)

*Best Short Documentary

Message to Man International Film Festival

*Jury Award for Best Short

Palm Springs ShortFest

Nominee, Best Documentary Short

Nashville Film Festival

Nominee, Best Documentary Short