More than a decade ago, when Ahmadinejad became the president of Iran for the second time and the people protested the announcement of the results, Jafar Panahi was arrested. On July 30, 2009, he – along with some other filmmakers – went to the graves of those who were killed in the street protests and officers arrested him there. A few days later, he was released, but after a few months, they arrested him for a second time on March 1, 2010, for activities against the regime.
This time, he was imprisoned for several months, so that he could not participate in the Cannes festival.
Panahi’s release was conditional and he was sentenced to six years ta’ziri imprisonment. That is, if he continued his activities and the judge determined that his activities were against the Islamic Republic, this sentence would be implemented. In addition to his imprisonment, he was banned for 20 years from writing scripts, making films, traveling abroad and having any interviews.
Jafar Panahi is an independent Iranian filmmaker who makes his films without the support of the government or government-affiliated companies. Almost all of his films are made with low budgets and he openly criticizes the society and the government. For this reason, he has always faced restrictions in making his films and has not received any support from the government.
Jafar Panahi has now been arrested again, related to the Metropol incident that happened on May 23, 2022. In this incident, Metropol Tower collapsed due to construction violations and many people were killed, injured and missing. People came to the streets to protest and demanded the trial of those who were responsible for this incident. Instead of helping and following the demands of the people as quickly as possible, the heads of the government suppressed and scattered the protesters.
In a continuation of these protests, cinematographers wrote a statement in support of the people, which was signed by about 200 people, including Mohammad Rasullof, Mostafa Aleahmad and Jafar Panahi. In this statement, they asked the police to put down their guns and not shoot the mourners.
After the publication of this statement on social media and by news agencies, the officers arrested Rasullof and Aleahmad. On July 11, 2022, when Panahi went to Evin prison to follow up on the situation of his friends, he was arrested because of his activities against the regime. He has rejected this issue many times and considers the statement to be solidarity and empathy with the people, not activity against the regime.
While he was in prison, he got infected with Covid-19 and his health deteriorated in very bad conditions and without treatment. Panahi protested the medical condition of the prison and his and other prisoners’ health many times until they sent him to the hospital, but after a few days, the officers forcibly returned him to the prison.
During Jafar’s imprisonment, his family could not meet or call him, and they expressed their concerns about his condition many times. Panah Panahi, Jafar’s son, in an Instagram post he later deleted, considered his father’s transfer to the hospital to be a show to deceive people.
The imprisonment of Jafar Panahi and two other filmmakers was reflected in Iranian and foreign news agencies, and various festivals, including Cannes and Venice, reacted to it. Julianne Moore, the head of the jury of the Venice festival, along with other artists present at the festival, supported the imprisoned cinematographers in Iran and demanded their release as soon as possible.
Panahi, who has received prestigious awards in his career, such as the Golden Lion for the best film at the Venice Film Festival, the Golden Bear for the best film at the Berlin Film Festival, and the Golden Palm for the best screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival, this year, also won the Special Jury Prize for his last film, No Bears, at the Venice Film Festival, while he did not have the right to leave his country and was in prison.
Although Iranian films shine in international festivals and win important film awards, filmmakers face many hardships and have to obtain permission from the Islamic Republic to make their films. Otherwise, they do not have the right. Even independent filmmakers who don’t plan to release their films in Iran have many restrictions. Mohsen Makhmalbaf and Bahman Ghobadi are among the filmmakers who have left Iran for many years because they could not work in their own country.
Jafar Panahi is a filmmaker who chose to continue working in Iran, but despite the problems the government has caused him and his frequent imprisonments, he is still an important filmmaker and has been able to shine in the most important film festivals. For more than a week now, there has been no news about his and other filmmakers’ conditions.
Image: Diyarenoon
