Iranian Film Opens as Director Is in Prison
2023-01-01
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1In 2010, Iranian director Jafar Panahi was arrested on charges of making an anti-government film without permission and causing anti-government protests.
2The government banned Panahi from making films for 20 years.
3Since then, he has made five highly praised movies.
4His latest, "No Bears," opens soon in U.S. theaters.
5But Panahi himself is in prison.
6In July, Panahi went to the Tehran prosecutor's office to ask about filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof.
7Rasoulof was arrested in July for social media posts he made at that time.
8The visit led to Panahi's arrest. He was sentenced to six years in jail based on a charge from 10 years ago.
9Panahi makes his films in Iran without government approval.
10He has played himself in the movies, which secretly show Iranian society.
11Panahi made "This is Not a Film" in his home.
12"Taxi" was filmed almost entirely inside a car, with a smiling Panahi playing the driver and picking up passengers along the way.
13In "No Bears," Panahi plays a fictionalized version of himself while making a film in a rural town along the Iran-Turkey border.
14Film critic Justin Chang of The Los Angeles Times called "No Bears" 2022's best movie.
15The film comes at a time when the Iranian film community is under severe government rules.
16A week after "No Bears" was first shown at the Venice Film Festival in September, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died while being held by Iran's morality police.
17Three months later, a wave of women-led protests continue.
18More than 500 protesters have been killed since September 17.
19That number comes from the group Human Rights Activists in Iran.
20More than 18,200 people have been detained.
21On Saturday, the well-known Iranian actress Taraneh Alidoosti was arrested after publishing a message on Instagram.
22The message expressed support for a man recently killed for crimes the Iranian government says he carried out during the protests.
23"No Bears" will test an Academy Awards policy.
24That rule says only governments can enter films for the prize of best international film.
25Critics have said that permits authoritarian governments to control which films compete for the valuable prize.
26Film companies Sideshow and Janus Films have bought "No Bears" with the hope that it can win other prizes at the Academy Awards.
27In "No Bears", Panahi rents an apartment from which he directs a film with the help of assistants.
28At one point in the film, Panahi stands along the Iran-Turkey border at night.
29As he looks at the lights in the distance, he thinks about crossing it.
30Doing so would lead to a life in exile that Panahi, in real life, has refused.
31Some parts of the film are very close to real life. Parts of "No Bears" were shot in Turkey, just like the story in the film.
32In Turkey, an Iranian couple is trying to get stolen passports to reach Europe.
33The Iranian couple is played by Mina Kavani and Bakhiyar Panjeei.
34Kavani herself has lived in Paris for seven years.
35She left Iran after nudity in the 2014 film "Red Rose" brought media harassment.
36Talking about Panahi, Kavani said, "This is the genius of his art. The idea that we were both in exile but on a different side was magic . . . this is very interesting to me, that he is in exile in his own country, but he's talking about those who left his country."
37When "No Bears" played at the New York Film Festival, Kavani read a statement from Panahi.
38The statement said independent Iranian filmmakers have always tried to push against censorship.
39She added that Panahi said, "No matter where, when, or under what circumstances, an independent filmmaker is either creating or thinking."
40"No Bears" opens in New York on December 23 and Los Angeles on January 10 before opening across the United States.
41I'm Andrew Smith.
1In 2010, Iranian director Jafar Panahi was arrested on charges of making an anti-government film without permission and causing anti-government protests. The government banned Panahi from making films for 20 years. 2Since then, he has made five highly praised movies. 3His latest, "No Bears," opens soon in U.S. theaters. 4But Panahi himself is in prison. 5In July, Panahi went to the Tehran prosecutor's office to ask about filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof. Rasoulof was arrested in July for social media posts he made at that time. 6The visit led to Panahi's arrest. He was sentenced to six years in jail based on a charge from 10 years ago. 7Making films in secret 8Panahi makes his films in Iran without government approval. He has played himself in the movies, which secretly show Iranian society. 9Panahi made "This is Not a Film" in his home. "Taxi" was filmed almost entirely inside a car, with a smiling Panahi playing the driver and picking up passengers along the way. 10In "No Bears," Panahi plays a fictionalized version of himself while making a film in a rural town along the Iran-Turkey border. 11Film critic Justin Chang of The Los Angeles Times called "No Bears" 2022's best movie. 12The film comes at a time when the Iranian film community is under severe government rules. A week after "No Bears" was first shown at the Venice Film Festival in September, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died while being held by Iran's morality police. Three months later, a wave of women-led protests continue. 13More than 500 protesters have been killed since September 17. That number comes from the group Human Rights Activists in Iran. More than 18,200 people have been detained. 14On Saturday, the well-known Iranian actress Taraneh Alidoosti was arrested after publishing a message on Instagram. The message expressed support for a man recently killed for crimes the Iranian government says he carried out during the protests. 15International film awards 16"No Bears" will test an Academy Awards policy. That rule says only governments can enter films for the prize of best international film. Critics have said that permits authoritarian governments to control which films compete for the valuable prize. 17Film companies Sideshow and Janus Films have bought "No Bears" with the hope that it can win other prizes at the Academy Awards. 18In "No Bears", Panahi rents an apartment from which he directs a film with the help of assistants. 19At one point in the film, Panahi stands along the Iran-Turkey border at night. As he looks at the lights in the distance, he thinks about crossing it. Doing so would lead to a life in exile that Panahi, in real life, has refused. 20Some parts of the film are very close to real life. Parts of "No Bears" were shot in Turkey, just like the story in the film. In Turkey, an Iranian couple is trying to get stolen passports to reach Europe. 21The Iranian couple is played by Mina Kavani and Bakhiyar Panjeei. Kavani herself has lived in Paris for seven years. She left Iran after nudity in the 2014 film "Red Rose" brought media harassment. 22Talking about Panahi, Kavani said, "This is the genius of his art. The idea that we were both in exile but on a different side was magic . . . this is very interesting to me, that he is in exile in his own country, but he's talking about those who left his country." 23When "No Bears" played at the New York Film Festival, Kavani read a statement from Panahi. 24The statement said independent Iranian filmmakers have always tried to push against censorship. She added that Panahi said, "No matter where, when, or under what circumstances, an independent filmmaker is either creating or thinking." 25"No Bears" opens in New York on December 23 and Los Angeles on January 10 before opening across the United States. 26I'm Andrew Smith. 27Jake Coyle wrote this story for the Associated Press. Andrew Smith adapted it for Voice of America Learning English. 28______________________________________________________________ 29Words in This Story 30society -n. the organization of people who live in a country or area 31entirely -adv. completely, not partly 32fictionalized -adj. referring to stories created from the imagination rather than reality 33rent -v. to pay money to the owner of something for its temporary use 34apartment -n. a room or set of rooms in which people live, usually inside a building with other apartments 35nudity -n. the state of not wearing any clothes 36harassment -n. behavior aimed to cause another person trouble through repeated attacks 37genius -n. having the character of being very intelligent and creative 38censorship -n. the blocking of any information that one person or group does not want to be seen or known by others. 39circumstance -n. situation 40_____________________________________________________________ 41We have a new comment system. 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