Mohammad Rasoulof‘s invitation to Cannes has ignited a campaign to allow the Iranian filmmaker to leave his home nation.
International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk (ICFR), an Amsterdam-based organization, issued a statement titled “Let Mohammad Rasoulof Go!” urging the Iranian government to allow the filmmaker to travel to France for this year’s Cannes Film Festival. The “There Is No Evil” filmmaker was invited to serve on the Un Certain Regard jury but is unable to attend due to Iran’s travel embargo on him.
Rasoulof was recently banned from leaving Iran after being arrested in July 2022 for posting statements criticizing government-sanctioned violence against protesters. Rasoulof was later temporarily released in February 2023 due to ongoing health concerns. He was later pardoned and sentenced to one year of penal servitude and a two-year ban from leaving Iran on the charge of “propaganda against the regime.”
Similarly, director Jafar Panahi, who was detained alongside Rasoulof, was released from prison in March 2023 following a hunger strike. Panahi has since been able to travel outside of Iran for the first time in 14 years, flying to France earlier this year and returning to Iran.
“Both have repeatedly been in conflict with Iranian authorities, had their passports confiscated and been jailed. Now one can travel, the other not,” the ICFR statement reads, citing the comparative treatment between Rasoulof and Panahi (via Deadline). “ICFR calls on the Iranian authorities to drop the travel ban against Mohammad Rasoulof and we encourage all film and culture institutions around the world to do the same.”
The ICFR is a joint initiative between IDFA, the European Film Academy (EFA), and the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) to support filmmakers facing persecution. The organization was founded following the protest to release Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov amid the Russian invasion.
The 2023 Cannes Un Certain Regard jury sans Rasoulof will be overseen by jury president John C. Reilly, who is joined by French director and screenwriter Alice Winocour, German actress Paula Beer, Franco-Cambodian director and producer Davy Chou, and Belgian actress Émilie Dequenne.
