Jafar Panahi (“It Was Just an Accident”) is going to prison. An Iranian court upheld its verdict finding him guilty of “propaganda against the regime.”
The ruling was originally made while Panahi was outside Iran, campaigning for awards for his Palme d’Or-winning film “It Was Just an Accident.” The court sentenced the director to one year in prison and imposed a two-year travel ban.
What did Panahi do exactly? He made an “underground and problematic film against the establishment,” according to the Iranian court, which, of course, refers to “It Was Just an Accident.”
Panahi could have stayed overseas and sought asylum; France would surely have welcomed him with open arms. Instead, he decided to return to Iran despite the potential risks, including an active warrant for his arrest.
“It Was Just an Accident” was shot secretly last year without an official permit in Iran. During production, some crew members were reportedly detained or questioned. After just one day of filming, several team members were arrested. Before the film’s Cannes premiere, some people associated with the production — including female actors — were reportedly summoned by Iran’s “Ministry of Intelligence.”
If this isn’t totalitarianism, I don’t know what is. A filmmaker has been sentenced to prison and banned from traveling because he made art.
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