752 Is Not A Number Offers a Harrowing Look at One Man’s Search for Justice
Toronto International Film Festival September 2022
Toronto dentist Hamed Esmaeilion is determined to uncover the truth behind the missile attacks that downed Ukrainian Flight PS752 shortly after its takeoff from Tehran on January 8, 2020, killing all 176 on board, including Hamed’s wife and nine-year-old daughter.
'752 Is Not A Number' is not only a depiction of one man's grief and search for answers where justice is impossible, but is also one of many prologues in a much longer story about the fight for lasting change. --Arezou Amin, Collider
Veteran director Babak Payami chronicles Canadian dentist Hamed Esmaeilion’s quest for justice in the aftermath of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, shot down in 2020 by the Iranian military.
On January 8, 2020, Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 went down as it was leaving Iranian air space. All 176 people on board were killed, many of them Iranian Canadians. For weeks Iranian authorities vociferously denied responsibility, but foreign governments and agencies were certain the plane was shot down by Iranian military, a fact Iran’s government eventually admitted. There were no answers as to why the plane was fired on or even why it was allowed to take off, since hostilities had broken out in the region in preceding days.
This tragedy is the subject of the documentary 752 Is Not A Number. The focus is one man’s dogged fight for the truth. Hamed Esmaeilion, a dentist in Newmarket, Ontario, lost his wife and his young daughter in the incident. Determined not to let the Iranian government exploit their memories, Hamed took a harrowing journey to Iran to claim the remains, then embarked on a quest for justice for all the victims in this atrocity.
MSNBC, an American television City interviews Hamed Esmaeilion and Babak Payami
The odds were stacked against him, notably because of the negligence of the Iranian government in securing the crash site, which was promptly bulldozed, destroying crucial evidence.Iran also refused outside agencies access to the crash site.Esmaeilion is immediately beset by a string of contacts claiming special knowledge about the crash, many of whom behave like scammers, teasing out information.
A portrait of heroism, determination, and unfathomable grief, 752 Is Not A Number is a powerful and deeply personal account from award-winning veteran director Babak Payami. (STEVE GRAVESTOCK)
Canada, 2022 English, Farsi WORLD PREMIERE 98 minutes Director:Babak Payami Cast: Hamed Esmaeilion Cinematography: Amir Ghorbani Nia Editing: Hooman Shams Producers:Babak Payami, Michael Mendes Leandro Production Company: Payam Films Inc. Screenplay:Babak Payami Publicist: Star PR