Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
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Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
Amir finds himself at a detention centre in Nogales. The conditions are terrible, the food is almost non-existent, and he barely sleeps for weeks. Finally, he and his fellow prisoners are released and loaded onto a bus heading for Mexico City. He is told he must return to Madrid. At the airport, he meets a beautiful, mysterious stranger who changes his life forever…almost. Finally, he heads to Italy to regroup—but that doesn’t turn out as planned, either.
The Hopeful
Amir Omidvar left Iran during the revolutionary crisis in 1982. For twenty months after leaving his home, Amir did everything he could to cross the Atlantic ocean. While taking refuge in Spain, he made three failed attempts to enter the US; a fake passport in Heathrow, a Mexican jail, and a beating by customs officers in Milan — until a fourth and final attempt brought him to Canadian shores. Amir speaks to his daughter, Shayda, about why he decided to leave and how arriving in Canada has impacted his life and the life of his family. The Hopeful, at its core, is about the Canadian Dream. Walk side by side with Amir through his personal journey, and hear how he persevered not only through physical obstacles, but feelings of desperation, loss, and loneliness, only to find hope and happiness in his new forever home.
