IRAN: Cannes 2010: Imprisoned filmmaker Jafar Panahi is honored at film festival [Corrected]
Amid the glitter and gaiety of the 63rd Cannes Film Festival opening, one of the nine chairs for jury members remained empty.
Internationally acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, slated to serve as a jury member at the festival, couldn't attend because he was being held in Tehran’s Evin prison.
In March 2010, plainclothes security officials raided Panahi’s Tehran home and arrested him along with his wife, daughter and 15 house guests. Though Iranian authorities shortly released the others, they held on to Panahi, accusing him of “making a film against the regime following the post-election events," according to the French daily Le Figaro.
Despite this, the prosecutor's office in Tehran argues that Panahi’s imprisonment has no political motive.
"The arrest of Jafar Panahi is not because he is an artist or for political reason[s]," prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi told the Iranian Students News Agency.
"He is accused of some crimes and was arrested with another person following an order by a judge," reported BBC News.
Authorities had previously arrested Panahi, a supporter of the protest movement that emerged after last year's disputed presidential elections held in June, for participating in a memorial service for Neda Agha-Soltan, the young woman killed in July 2009 allegedly at the hands of a pro-government militiaman.
Upon Panahi’s release, they prohibited him from traveling outside Iran, effectively blocking his scheduled participation in the 2010 Berlin Film Festival.
On the vanguard of the Iranian neorealist-film movement, Panahi films explore the sensitive social dimensions of life in his country, garnering international popularity. His ties to Cannes extend back to 1995, when his first feature film, "White Balloon," won the Caméra d’Or at Cannes.
The movie examines the relationship between an Iranian family and an Afghan refugee during the Persian New Year.
In 2003, Panahi won the jury award in the Un Certain Regard category, which spotlighted rising filmmakers, for "Crimson Gold," a socially charged movie about class differences in Iran. The government has strictly banned the movie, which has been screened in more than 40 other countries.
There were outcries over Panahi's detainment from the film industry as well as human rights groups and diplomats.
Hollywood heavy-hitters including Martin Scorsese, Robert Redford, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert De Niro and Steven Spielberg led a petition for Panahi’s release last month.
Amnesty International recently condemned the Iranian government for Panahi’s prolonged detainment without trial. French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Culture Minister Frédéric Mitterrand issued a joint statement.
“We call for his immediate release and urge the Tehran authorities to respect the fundamental right of Iranians to freedom of expression and creativity,” it said, as reported by Reuters.
Presiding over the jury at Cannes, director Tim Burton also supported Panahi’s release and spoke about the significance of free speech to the art of filmmaking. Asked at a news conference whether "Panahi should be released, Burton replied, "Yes, of course. All of us are for freedom of expression. We fight for that every day and in our lives."
In honor of Panahi, the 2010 Montreal World Film Festival will screen several films from the director’s oeuvre, including his most recent, "Offside," the 2006 film about Iranian girls who must dress as boys to watch a football match, as the regime strictly prohibits women from entering sports stadiums.
[Corrected: A previous version mistakenly called the movie, "Outside."]
Panahi is not the only Iranian filmmaker in jail. In January 2010, fellow director Mohammad Ali Shirzadi was arrested outside his home in Tehran. Similar to the raid faced by Panahi, Shirzadi’s computer, personal notebook and other belongings were confiscated. Shirzadi’s family believes his arrest could be connected to an interview he filmed between human-rights advocate Emadeddin Baghi and the late Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri two years ago.
-- Becky Lee Katz in Beirut
Video: Filmmaker Jafar Panahi trying to drum up support for Iran's opposition movement last August in Canada. Credit YouTube
Photo: Jafar Panahi. Credit: Johannes Eisele / AFP/Getty Images. Official poster from Cannes. Credit: festival-cannes.com
Dear Bloggers,
It's noble that you are giving so much attention to this Iranian/Canadian imprisoned in Iran.
However there is a case that is very close to home that you have ignored. There is a journalist who used to write for Huffington Post and the LA Times, up until about 7 months ago, who was arrested and sentenced because of her investigative journalism.
She is a U.S. citizen and this occurred in Los Angeles.
She uncovered the ACH bank Transfer/ Cyber Scam story a year before law enforcement had any clue what was going on.
Then the LA Times and the Huffington Post both refused to run the story. She was subsequently tried and sentenced amidst law and judicial outcry and claims that No such thing as ACH Transfer Cyber scamming or Mules existed.
It wasn't until December that the FBI finally issued a public warning about this. After discovering that nearly $100million has been lost in these scams by the American people.
that journalist can now not return to her own country, the U.S. She is a U.S. native citizen, her family has been in the U.S. since the 1600s.
Why is your focus ALWAYS on Iran and China for abuse of human rights and freedom of speech?
What about the cases and the people who live amongst you? who exist in your midst?
What about ME?!!!!!
Paige
http://the4thestate.posterous.com/
Posted by: Paige | May 15, 2010 at 05:53 PM
Iran violating Human Rights. Ho hum. Too bad there are no Palestinians involved. It would make the front page.
Posted by: MissMarple | May 13, 2010 at 09:02 PM
Dear Becky,
The article was fantastic. It' s been almost a year that we read about Iran here and there. But yours is truly one of the best, from the correct point of view till the suitable vocabularies (for instance : plainclothes security officials and...). If I can make myself clear the translation of similar made up "military" terms which do not make any sense to native speakers, would be really hard to translate or been replaced!! Yours are really good as I mentioned; so I let myself to correct you in a small proper name :"In honor of Panahi, the 2010 Montreal World Film Festival will screen several films from the director’s oeuvre, including his most recent, "Outside," the 2006 film about Iranian girls who ...", the movie is called "Offside"
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499537/
Thank you so much for your amazing article
Hope to read more from you,
Peace
Posted by: Yasmine | May 13, 2010 at 06:33 PM
Jafar Panahi's film from 2006 is called "Offside" and NOT "Outside"!!!!!
Posted by: filmfan | May 13, 2010 at 05:27 PM
Too bad the Iranian govt is so anal... the world could benefit if Iran had a real democratic government and travel there was easy. I've been there twice and loved it.
Posted by: Jack C NYC | May 13, 2010 at 02:12 PM