Five years ago, Samira did not want to continue in the regular school system in Iran. To help her with her education, I set up a home school. It wasn't just for my family, it was open to other friends.

Time magazine selected Makhmalbaf's 2001 film Kandahar as one of top 100 films of all time. Makhmalbaf left Iran in 2005 shortly after the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and now lives in Paris following the events of the 2009 Iranian presidential election.