Dr Seyyed Mohsen Hashemi, art researcher: An interesting point in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh is that he acts as a screenwriter, director and editor all at once. He is a screenwriter because he has selected particular scenes from various narratives at hand that are the most effective and visual…

IBNA: Dr Seyyed Mohsen Hashemi, art researcher: Shahnameh is a narrative work where scenes are arranged in a way to make it more believable with no need for extra description. This is clearly visible in the section 'Kingdom of Shirouyeh' in which he has made a metaphorical and ironic montage by juxtaposing two images.

An interesting point in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh is that he acts as a screenwriter, director and editor all at once. He is a screenwriter because he has selected particular scenes from various narratives at hand that are the most effective and visual. He is a director as he has conveyed through his lines the impression of long shots, close-ups, and effects. Moreover, he acts as an editor who manages time and selects the final cut among his narratives.

In the story of 'Rustam and Esfandyar', Katayun describes Rustam's actions in the most concise form and this is exactly what is known as 'montage': "A rider as mighty as an elephant \ who runs blood rivers on the earth as large as Nile \ who tears White Devil's heart wide open \ and the sun would lose its track by fear of his sword \ One who has slaughtered Moon of Hamavaran \ and no one dares insult him \ And so there was no warrior \ to counter him except Sohrab \ who was immediately killed by his father in battlefield." These lines provide a select outlook of events to introduce Rustam to us.

Parallel Montage in Shahnameh

Parallel or Cross Montage is a necessity for storytelling as it makes the sotry more appealing. This is seen in many occasions in Shahnameh, especially in the story of "Saving Keykhosrow from Land of Touran". Here
Ferdowsi creates a moment of suspense. The reader cannot but ask the question whether Guive can save Keykhosrow at the end, no matter how many times the reader has heard the story.

In other words, the reader feels that he is actually watching a film and is worried about the date of the hero. On in the story of 'Keykhosrow's Great Battle with Afrasiab", when the armies of Iran and Touran line up face to face for war and cannot imagine may come upon them, the suspension gets more visible. Here, Ferdowsi shows us a static picture where the conflict is seen in the long shot.

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