Matthew Rankin’s Universal Language has a trailer, which you can check out below. Rankin co-wrote the film along with Ila Firouzabadi and Pirouz Nemati.

In a mysterious and surreal interzone somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg, the lives of multiple characters interweave with each other in surprising and mysterious ways. Grade-schoolers Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to claim it. Meanwhile, Massoud leads a group of increasingly befuddled tourists through the monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his meaningless job in a Québécois government office and sets out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother. Space, time and personal identities crossfade, interweave and echo into a surreal comedy of misdirection.

The film, which premiered at this year’s Cannes, stars Matthew Rankin, Pirouz Nemati, Rojina Esmaeili, Danielle Fichaud and Sobhan Javadi.

Oscilloscope Laboratories will release Universal Language in theaters February 2025.