space- myth, representation, cinema, city, social spatialisation, identity, Non- places

This article examines city representation in Iranin cinema in the 1370s, 1380s and 1390s. The theoretical process of the research is based on Rob shield’s view about Social spatialisation. The research method is qualitative content analysis. 18 movies are chosen and analyzed. The findings show that: in the 1370s most of the duration of the movies is limited to indoor affairs and the part that is dedicated to outdoor affairs is limited to physical, populational, immigrational, suburbanism and impoverished areas dimensions. Urban life of this era is underexposed insomuch that the space-myth “cityless society” is formed in the 1380s dense constructions, extensive changes and development of Non- placess is remarkable among cinema productions. Furthermore, the dull dimensions of these changes such as the polarization of city space (poor/ rich) and social harms such as poverty, unemployment, addiction, runaway girls which have eventually resulted in a sense of disappointment among city residents. Space-myths constructed “negative productivity and city mirage”; in the 1390s a city is represented which in the wake of changes and extensive constructions of the previous decade has now come to a dead end. A city which stands up against its residents using its visional and sclerotic structures and challenges them and in return, the residents take an inactive position against these structures. The central concept of city representation in this decade is “sclerotic city and disabled subject”. Finally, the cinema barely presents an image of city universalism and is focused on dull city dimensions in these few cases.