The Mirror starts with the simple story of Mina, a little girl who has lost her way home from school. Our filmic expectations are challenged when the film changes midway from fiction to documentary. The shooting of the second half deviated unexpectedly from the original script when the young actress suddenly wanted to stop acting. and started to walk home. Panahi decided then to document Mina‘s journey home. Although the film shifts from narrative to documentary, the trials of a girl returning home engages the viewer to think that the ending would be the same even if the first half had proceeded without shifting into documentary mode. While the film‘s story does not change, Panagi draws a clear line between fiction and documentary, unlike other Iranian directors who dissolve boundaries by mixing the two genres. Although the distinction is clear, the result is that the two parts ＂mirror＂ each other. Finally, the concern for the lost girl is more important than issues of form. We are warned about the indifference of adults to children, and Panagi demonstrates a caring approach to his subject not only through fiction, but with documentary as social practice. (Kim Ji-Seok)