When the Persimmons Grew
(Xurmalar Yetişən Vaxt)

«Home is when you feel time.» Taking the path that leads him back to his native village, Katex, at the foot of the Caucasus, Hilal Baydarov talks with his mother about passing time and the seasons. Here, the blooming of persimmons is proof that time is marked by the rhythms of nature. As the filmmaker writes in his note of intention: « Durations, which nature filled with meaning ». Birdsong, the dogs barking outside, the movements of the clock hands and the simple gesture of combing hair intersperse our discovery of this picture of nostalgic reunions : that of the filmmaker reconnecting with part of himself, that of a son finding a mother’s solitude. Midway between eulogy and elegy, Hilal Baydarov depicts an autumn of intimacy that is both deep and crystalline. This closeness with things seems a key element of a little-known filmography, where the filmmaker’s name – a unique case in Azerbaijan’s independent cinema – is the only name in most of the credits. AR