Story perspectives

Iman Vellani to Lead Climate Thriller ‘Suffering Is Optional’

5/16/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Iman Vellani will headline the climate thriller “Suffering Is Optional” as Noor Rahman, a 20-year-old drama student in a “Hamlet” adaptation.
Production begins early 2027 with principal photography in Hamilton and Montreal.
Writer-director Zarrar Kahn, whose Cannes-premiered debut “In Flames” was Pakistan’s Oscar entry, directs film financed by Telefilm Canada with CityLights Media, LBG Films, Other Memory Media and Couronne Nord, and produced by Lindsay Blair Goeldner and Anam Abbas.

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Story summary

Iman Vellani will headline the climate thriller “Suffering Is Optional” as Noor Rahman, a 20-year-old drama student in a “Hamlet” adaptation.
Production begins early 2027 with principal photography in Hamilton and Montreal.
Writer-director Zarrar Kahn, whose Cannes-premiered debut “In Flames” was Pakistan’s Oscar entry, directs film financed by Telefilm Canada with CityLights Media, LBG Films, Other Memory Media and Couronne Nord, and produced by Lindsay Blair Goeldner and Anam Abbas.