Dar Saaye Sarv is an Iranian animated short movie that won the 2025 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Movie. Running just 20 minutes with no dialogue, its animation style differs significantly from familiar American or Japanese animation—more abstract, with exaggerated character proportions.
The narrative centers on a father consumed by guilt after losing his wife in war, struggling to connect with his only daughter. When she runs away and witnesses a beached whale, she attempts every possible rescue method. The father joins her efforts, but their combined strength proves insufficient. Returning to his ship, the father leaves while his daughter continues to aid the whale by pouring water and laying cloths. The father ultimately sinks his boat to pull the whale back into the sea. The daughter discovers the whale has been saved, but when she arrives to see her father's sunken ship, she cannot find him.
Such animated shorts often carry metaphorical meanings. Personally, I feel the beached whale symbolizes the protagonist's inner turmoil. While his daughter strives to help him, such psychological struggles ultimately require him to confront his fears courageously, release his obsessions, let go of the past, and move forward—no longer lingering or looking back. Only then can he embrace a new life and bring liberation to those around him.