In a town somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg everyone speaks French or Persian. Stories begin to overlap: children try to liberate money frozen in the ice, a man guides befuddled tourists through historic sites of Winnipeg, and a government employee (Canadian filmmaker Matthew Rankin) quits his job in a Québecois government office to set out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother. Rankin and Iranian writers Ila Firouzabadi and Pirouz Nemati won the inaugural Directors’ Fortnight Audience Award at Cannes for this absurdist comedy that variously evokes the films of Abbas Kiarostami, Wes Anderson, and Guy Maddin. 

“Universal Language offers an idiosyncratic vision of a world connected by the threads of chance and fate, but most powerfully through kindness and stories.”
– Alliance of Women Film Journalists

This film is shortlisted for the category International Feature Film for the 97th Academy Awards on March 2, 2025.

Festival Tickets

• $10 general admission; $8 MFAH members, students with ID, seniors (65+)

Plan Your Visit

• This screening takes place in the Brown Auditorium Theater in the Law Building.
• Parking Information | Museum Hours | MFAH Campus Map