Granaz Moussavi’s When Pomegranates Howl has been put forward as Australia’s official submission for the Best International Feature Film at the 2022 Academy Awards.
Shot in Afghanistan, the film follows nine-year-old Hewad (Arafat Faiz), who hustles on the streets of Kabul but dreams of stardom. When an Australian photojournalist befriends him and starts documenting his life in order to create an empathetic depiction of children in a war-torn society, Heward is hopeful that his luck may finally be changing.
Written and directed by Moussavi, the Australian/Afghanistan co-production was produced by Parvin Productions, in association with Sterga Productions, with additional financial assistance from the Adelaide Film Festival Investment Fund and the South Australian Film Corporation, as well as support from the Netherlands Embassy, Kabul.
Moussavi also produces alongside Baheer Wardak, Christine Williams and Marzieh Vafamehr, with Shaun Miller serving as executive producer.
The selection comes after the project was...
Shot in Afghanistan, the film follows nine-year-old Hewad (Arafat Faiz), who hustles on the streets of Kabul but dreams of stardom. When an Australian photojournalist befriends him and starts documenting his life in order to create an empathetic depiction of children in a war-torn society, Heward is hopeful that his luck may finally be changing.
Written and directed by Moussavi, the Australian/Afghanistan co-production was produced by Parvin Productions, in association with Sterga Productions, with additional financial assistance from the Adelaide Film Festival Investment Fund and the South Australian Film Corporation, as well as support from the Netherlands Embassy, Kabul.
Moussavi also produces alongside Baheer Wardak, Christine Williams and Marzieh Vafamehr, with Shaun Miller serving as executive producer.
The selection comes after the project was...
- 10/25/2021
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Writer-director Granaz Moussavi’s second feature When Pomegranates Howl follows Hewad, a nine-year-old boy who supports his family by selling goods from a cart on the harsh streets of Kabul after the death of his father. At home he is also facing the challenge of the forced marriage of his mother to his uncle. He dreams of escaping his war torn poverty existence by becoming a rich and famous actor, taking care of his mum himself and buying his family a fancy new house.
An Australian photojournalist befriends Hewad and starts documenting his life in order to depict an empathetic image of the children of this war-torn society. Inspired by this, Hewad sets out to enlist his friends to help create an imaginary Hollywood style action film. While he and his friends are playing war games on the streets as an audition for the film, tragedy strikes.
When Pomegranates Howl is produced by Christine Williams,...
An Australian photojournalist befriends Hewad and starts documenting his life in order to depict an empathetic image of the children of this war-torn society. Inspired by this, Hewad sets out to enlist his friends to help create an imaginary Hollywood style action film. While he and his friends are playing war games on the streets as an audition for the film, tragedy strikes.
When Pomegranates Howl is produced by Christine Williams,...
- 10/21/2021
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
With the Us and Israel insisting that "all options remain open, including military action, if Iran continues with its uranium enrichment program" and Iran snapping back that it'll stage "a reciprocal attack" if provoked, as the AP reports today, a little speed-bump in the Oscar race looks pretty damn trivial. Nonetheless, in today's Observer, Saeed Kamali Dehghan reports that "Masoud Ferasati, an Iranian writer whose views are close to those of the Islamic regime, said [recently on state-run television]: 'The image of our society that A Separation depicts is the dirty picture westerners are wishing for.' Ferasati added that political motivations were behind the many awards for Iranian films in the past two decades, and said an Oscar for A Separation should not be welcomed by Iranians." According to Dehghan, though, many "ordinary Iranians," have indeed welcomed the slew of awards Asghar Farhadi's film has garnered, beginning with the Golden and...
- 2/5/2012
- MUBI
As international tensions rise, critics close to the regime dismiss praise for A Separation
It has picked up award after award, including a Golden Globe last month for the best foreign language film and the Golden Bear at last year's Berlin film festival. And it has delighted ordinary Iranians grateful for some glory at a time when international tensions are rising and the country's regime is ever more isolated.
But not everyone in Tehran is happy that Asghar Farhadi's hugely successful work, A Separation, is now a racing certainty to win an Oscar for the best foreign film at this month's Academy Awards.
The backlash was apparent on state-run television recently when Masoud Ferasati, an Iranian writer whose views are close to those of the Islamic regime, said: "The image of our society that A Separation depicts is the dirty picture westerners are wishing for." Ferasati added that political...
It has picked up award after award, including a Golden Globe last month for the best foreign language film and the Golden Bear at last year's Berlin film festival. And it has delighted ordinary Iranians grateful for some glory at a time when international tensions are rising and the country's regime is ever more isolated.
But not everyone in Tehran is happy that Asghar Farhadi's hugely successful work, A Separation, is now a racing certainty to win an Oscar for the best foreign film at this month's Academy Awards.
The backlash was apparent on state-run television recently when Masoud Ferasati, an Iranian writer whose views are close to those of the Islamic regime, said: "The image of our society that A Separation depicts is the dirty picture westerners are wishing for." Ferasati added that political...
- 2/5/2012
- by Saeed Kamali Dehghan
- The Guardian - Film News
Marzieh Vafamehr has been released from prison. The Iranian actress, who is best known internationally for starring in My Tehran for Sale, was imprisoned and sentenced to 90 lashes for her role in the Australian-produced movie earlier this year. Amnesty International's campaigns manager Hannah Harborow told Adelaide Now: "We are extremely pleased to hear that Marzieh has been released without being subjected to the cruel and degrading punishment of flogging, but the crackdown on filmmakers continues in Iran. "Marzieh seems to have been released after an appeal court reduced her imprisonment to three months and overturned the (more)...
- 10/31/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Amnesty International says an Iranian appeals court has overturned the lashing sentence against an actress who appeared in a film critical of the Islamic republic's hard-line policies.
Amnesty's website says Marzieh Vafamehr was released from prison earlier this week after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
There was no report on Saturday on Vafamehr's case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr appeared in the Australian-backed film "My Tehran for Sale," which was shot in the Iranian capital. It tells the story of a young actress whose stage work is banned by authorities.
It premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, but is banned in Iran.
Amnesty's website says Marzieh Vafamehr was released from prison earlier this week after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
There was no report on Saturday on Vafamehr's case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr appeared in the Australian-backed film "My Tehran for Sale," which was shot in the Iranian capital. It tells the story of a young actress whose stage work is banned by authorities.
It premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, but is banned in Iran.
- 10/29/2011
- by AP
- Huffington Post
Marzieh Vafamehr, who appeared in a film critical of Iran's repressive policies, has had her harsh sentence lifted
An Iranian court has overturned the lashing sentence imposed an an actor after she appeared in a film critical of the Islamic republic's repressive policies, according to Amnesty International.
Marzieh Vafamehr, who appeared with her head uncovered in the film My Tehran for Sale, was released from prison after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
Amnesty said Vafamehr was released on Monday night, although there has been no report on her case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr, wife of the acclaimed film-maker Nasser Taghvai, was arrested in July after Iranian authorities took exception to the film about an actor whose theatre work is banned in Iran.
The film, directed by Granaz Moussavi, features Vafamehr as an actor who flees to Australia as an illegal immigrant after being persecuted in Iran.
An Iranian court has overturned the lashing sentence imposed an an actor after she appeared in a film critical of the Islamic republic's repressive policies, according to Amnesty International.
Marzieh Vafamehr, who appeared with her head uncovered in the film My Tehran for Sale, was released from prison after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
Amnesty said Vafamehr was released on Monday night, although there has been no report on her case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr, wife of the acclaimed film-maker Nasser Taghvai, was arrested in July after Iranian authorities took exception to the film about an actor whose theatre work is banned in Iran.
The film, directed by Granaz Moussavi, features Vafamehr as an actor who flees to Australia as an illegal immigrant after being persecuted in Iran.
- 10/29/2011
- by David Batty
- The Guardian - Film News
Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Amnesty International says an Iranian appeals court has overturned the lashing sentence against an actress who appeared in a film critical of the Islamic republic's hard-line policies.
Amnesty's website says Marzieh Vafamehr was released from prison earlier this week after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
There was no report on Saturday on Vafamehr's case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr appeared in the Australian-backed film "My Tehran for Sale," which was shot in the Iranian capital. It tells the story of a young actress whose stage work is banned by authorities.
It premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, but is banned in Iran.
Watch the trailer for "My Tehran for Sale":...
Amnesty's website says Marzieh Vafamehr was released from prison earlier this week after her sentence of one year in prison and 90 lashes was overturned on appeal.
There was no report on Saturday on Vafamehr's case in Iranian media.
Vafamehr appeared in the Australian-backed film "My Tehran for Sale," which was shot in the Iranian capital. It tells the story of a young actress whose stage work is banned by authorities.
It premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, but is banned in Iran.
Watch the trailer for "My Tehran for Sale":...
- 10/29/2011
- by AP
- Huffington Post
"Two decades ago everything tasted better when drizzled with the special chocolate sauce of 'postmodernism,' and Twin Peaks was the most ironic cherry pie vehicle for that addictive popular culture had yet baked up," writes Dennis Harvey in the San Francisco Bay Guardian. "It was so cool you could hardly believe it was actually being watched." Tonight, the Roxie and MIDNiTES For MANiACS present a "20th Anniversary Celebration for David Lynch's Twin Peaks" that kicks off with Otto Preminger's Laura (1944), the inspiration for Lynch and Mark Frost's series, followed by the pilot and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1922). "Plus, pie on sale all night courtesy of Three Babes Bakeshop!"
How to Be a Retronaut points us to a fine set of photos at Welcome to Twin Peaks: "When Twin Peaks' in-house photographer had quit and no further promotional shots were needed since the show was cancelled,...
How to Be a Retronaut points us to a fine set of photos at Welcome to Twin Peaks: "When Twin Peaks' in-house photographer had quit and no further promotional shots were needed since the show was cancelled,...
- 10/29/2011
- MUBI
Tehran, Oct 29: Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr, who was sentenced to 90 lashes after appearing in an Australian movie, has been released from a prison in her country, human rights group Amnesty International said.
Vafamehr was arrested in July and sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for her role in Australian movie 'My Tehran for Sale', which was later banned in Iran.
The film shows Vafameher without a headscarf, while in another scene she is shown consuming alcohol.
'While the release of Marzieh Vafamehr is a welcome development, it is deeply worrying that three filmmakers are still being held in Tehran's Evin.
Vafamehr was arrested in July and sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for her role in Australian movie 'My Tehran for Sale', which was later banned in Iran.
The film shows Vafameher without a headscarf, while in another scene she is shown consuming alcohol.
'While the release of Marzieh Vafamehr is a welcome development, it is deeply worrying that three filmmakers are still being held in Tehran's Evin.
- 10/29/2011
- by Abhijeet Sen
- RealBollywood.com
Marzieh Vafamehr
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr who was arrested for her role in the Australian film My Tehran For Sale has been released from jail, according to Amnesty International.
The actress was arrested and sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for a scene in the film where she didn’t wear a head covering. She was released on Monday without suffering the additional punishment of 90 lashes after her imprisonment was reduced to three months.
“As filmmakers we believe in freedom of speech and support all artists who are imprisoned and punished in Iran for expressing themselves through their art,” said My Tehran For Sale producers Kate Croser and Julie Ryan of Cyan Films in a joint statement.
The film was funded by the Adelaide Film Festival and South Australian Film Corporation, and premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, without officially releasing in Iran.
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr who was arrested for her role in the Australian film My Tehran For Sale has been released from jail, according to Amnesty International.
The actress was arrested and sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for a scene in the film where she didn’t wear a head covering. She was released on Monday without suffering the additional punishment of 90 lashes after her imprisonment was reduced to three months.
“As filmmakers we believe in freedom of speech and support all artists who are imprisoned and punished in Iran for expressing themselves through their art,” said My Tehran For Sale producers Kate Croser and Julie Ryan of Cyan Films in a joint statement.
The film was funded by the Adelaide Film Festival and South Australian Film Corporation, and premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, without officially releasing in Iran.
- 10/29/2011
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr has been released from jail - three months after she was taken into custody for starring in an acclaimed Australian film which has been banned in her native country.
Vafamehr was sentenced to one year behind bars and ordered to receive 90 lashes after appearing in the 2009 drama My Tehran for Sale, the storyline for which is critical of the Islamic country's hard-line policies. The actress is believed to have been punished for featuring in the film without her traditional hijab headscarf.
But the sentence was overturned by officials at an appeals court on Monday, when her jail term was reduced to the three months already served.
Human rights activists at Amnesty International have hailed the star's release, although they insist it is "deeply worrying" that other Iranian directors, including Jafar Panahi and Mehran Zinatbakhsh, were still imprisoned for speaking out against Iran's oppressive regime through the medium of film.
Last week (begs17Oct11), officials at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Directors Guild of America and the American Society of Cinematographers all joined forces to call for the immediate release of the filmmakers imprisoned in Iran.
Vafamehr was sentenced to one year behind bars and ordered to receive 90 lashes after appearing in the 2009 drama My Tehran for Sale, the storyline for which is critical of the Islamic country's hard-line policies. The actress is believed to have been punished for featuring in the film without her traditional hijab headscarf.
But the sentence was overturned by officials at an appeals court on Monday, when her jail term was reduced to the three months already served.
Human rights activists at Amnesty International have hailed the star's release, although they insist it is "deeply worrying" that other Iranian directors, including Jafar Panahi and Mehran Zinatbakhsh, were still imprisoned for speaking out against Iran's oppressive regime through the medium of film.
Last week (begs17Oct11), officials at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Directors Guild of America and the American Society of Cinematographers all joined forces to call for the immediate release of the filmmakers imprisoned in Iran.
- 10/28/2011
- WENN
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr was released from prison Monday after her sentence was overturned by an appeals court, Amnesty International reports. Vafamehr had been sentenced to a year in prison and 90 lashes for appearing in the 2009 Australian film "My Tehran for Sale," which is banned in Iran. In the movie -- which was filmed in the Iranian capital -- Vafamehr is seen with a shaved head, and without the head covering that's required of Iranian women. In one scene, she also appears to drink alcohol -- also a no-no...
- 10/28/2011
- by Tim Kenneally
- The Wrap
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr, who was sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for starring in the Australian production "My Tehran for Sale," has been released from prison without suffering the lashes and further imprisonment. According to Amnesty International, Cyan Films, the South Australian Film Corporation and the Adelaide Film Festival, Vafamehr was released after an appeal court reduced her imprisonment to three months and overturned the flogging ...
- 10/28/2011
- Indiewire
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr has been released from jail, according to Amnesty International. Vafamehr was sentenced to 90 lashes and one year in jail for her role in the feature film My Tehran For Sale, sparking outrage among the local film community, which petitioned for her release. My Tehran For Sale was partially funded by the South Australian Film Corporation. Vafamehr had already served four months in jail but has now been released after her sentence was reduced to three months and no corporal punishment. Actors Equity Australia director Simon Whipp welcomed the news. .However, it is deeply disturbing that any performer could be found guilty of committing a crime and sentenced to three months in jail for appearing in a feature film," he said in a statement....
- 10/28/2011
- by Brendan Swift
- IF.com.au
Marzieh Vafamehr, the Iranian actress sentenced to one year in jail and 90 lashes for taking part in Granaz Moussavi's 2009 Australian drama My Tehran for Sale, was released on Monday night (Oct. 24). According to Amnesty International, an appeals court reduced Vafamehr's jail time to three months and overturned the flogging sentence. In My Tehran for Sale, Vafamehr is shown in one scene without the head-covering scarf. In another, she "appears to drink alcohol." Despite the good news regarding Vafamehr, Iran's filmmakers continue to be persecuted by that country's rabid Islamic regime. On September 17, documentary directors Hadi Afarideh, Naser Saffarian, Mohsen Shahrnazdar, and producer and distributor Katayoun Shahabi were arrested for having allegedly sold their films to several broadcasters, including the BBC. As per Amnesty International, the first three were released on bail, but Shahabi remains in custody. Amnesty adds that director Mehran Zinatbakhsh "is also believed to have been arrested...
- 10/27/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Hollywood's most powerful organizations released a joint statement today calling for the release of six Iranian filmmakers including director Jafar Panahi and actor Marzieh Vafamehr. Lauded as one of Iran's greatest living filmmakers, Panahi is serving a six-year jail sentence under house arrest and is banned for making any films for 20 years. He recently appeared in the critically acclaimed pseudo-documentary "This Is Not A Film" which screened at the Cannes, Toronto and New York Film Festivals. Vahamehr is an actress who was given a year in jail and 90 lashes for appearing in the 2009 film "My Tehran For Sale" (her...
- 10/19/2011
- Hitfix
Somehow this slipped past us this weekend, but Iran has taken another step toward silencing one of the country’s most important filmmakers after an appeals court upheld a six-year jail sentence, according to various reports that included the government-run newspaper Iran. According to that newspaper: “The charges he was sentenced for are acting against national security and propaganda against the regime.” His colleague Mohammad Rasoulof also faced a six-year sentence, and that was knocked down to one year. Panahi’s sentence includes a 20-year ban on making films, and traveling abroad. The convictions against Jafar Panahi and Rasoulof prompted an outcry among filmmakers, Amnesty International and international film festivals this year. Panahi’s lawyers reportedly will appeal again, but things are looking dire for an award-winning filmmaker who publicly mourned the deaths of protesters in the presidential elections, and reports say he and Rasoulof reportedly made a film about the aftermath.
- 10/17/2011
- by MIKE FLEMING
- Deadline
The Viennale posted its full program last night. Besides this year's festival standards (Kaurismäki's Le Havre, Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method and so on), there'll be a Chantal Akerman retrospective, a strand devoted to new work by Jean-Marie Straub, another to Sasha Pirker, and another to Lee Anne Schmitt, a focus on Austrian silent films of the 1920s, another on Reinhard Kahn and Michel Leiner, tributes to Soi Cheang, producer Jeremy Thomas and Harry Belafonte, and Ulrich Seidl will screen a work-in-progress.
In A Short History of Cahiers du Cinéma (2009), Emilie Bickerton "restates the main polemical point" of her essay that originally appeared in the New Left Review in 2006, namely, as Bill Krohn puts it at Kino Slang, "that the Cahiers is dead as a doornail… As someone who has been writing for the Cahiers during the thirty-year period that Bickerton judges to have been one of steep decline, I'd better...
In A Short History of Cahiers du Cinéma (2009), Emilie Bickerton "restates the main polemical point" of her essay that originally appeared in the New Left Review in 2006, namely, as Bill Krohn puts it at Kino Slang, "that the Cahiers is dead as a doornail… As someone who has been writing for the Cahiers during the thirty-year period that Bickerton judges to have been one of steep decline, I'd better...
- 10/13/2011
- MUBI
A number of Australian filmmakers have revealed that they are "appalled" at the recent sentencing given to an Iranian actress for her role in a movie. The company behind Australian-produced My Tehran for Sale, which tells the story of Iran's harsh rulings on the arts, said it is "deeply shocked" that the film's leading actress Marzieh Vafamehr will face a year in jail and 90 lashes as a punishment. Executives told The ABC: "Adelaide-based company Cyan Films worked with an established Iranian production company to produce the film and all proper government permits were obtained for filming." Producers Julie Ryan and Kate Croser said: "The producers would like to emphasise that Marzieh's involvement in the film was limited to her role as an actress and she was not in any other way involved in the behind-the-scenes filmmaking. (more)...
- 10/12/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
World Movies will screen Australian-Iranian co-production My Tehran For Sale in the wake of lead actress Marzieh Vafamehr’s incarceration in Iran.
In a case of life imitating art for Vafamehr, My Tehran for Sale, is the story of a young actress in Iran whose theatre work is banned by authorities and forced to lead a secret life to express her art. Vafamehr has received one year in jail and 90 lashes by the Irani regime.
The film, in part funded by the South Australian Film Corporation for the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, and produced by Cyan Films’ Julie Ryan and Kate Croser as well as writer/director Granaz Moussavi, was not officially released in Iran, however, it was seen by authorities via distribution through the black market.
Moussavi, who emigrated from Iran in the 1990s, returned to her native country to film the picture. Moussavi told ABC’s 7.30 Report: “I...
In a case of life imitating art for Vafamehr, My Tehran for Sale, is the story of a young actress in Iran whose theatre work is banned by authorities and forced to lead a secret life to express her art. Vafamehr has received one year in jail and 90 lashes by the Irani regime.
The film, in part funded by the South Australian Film Corporation for the Adelaide Film Festival in 2009, and produced by Cyan Films’ Julie Ryan and Kate Croser as well as writer/director Granaz Moussavi, was not officially released in Iran, however, it was seen by authorities via distribution through the black market.
Moussavi, who emigrated from Iran in the 1990s, returned to her native country to film the picture. Moussavi told ABC’s 7.30 Report: “I...
- 10/12/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
An Iranian actress has been sentenced to 90 lashes and a year in jail for starring in an Australian movie with a shaved head -- and no head-covering. Marzieh Vafamehr, who appeared in "My Tehran for Sale," has appealed the sentence. According to Amnesty International, Vafamehr also appears to drink alcohol in the movie. Consuming alcohol is banned under Iranian law. The penalty is 80 lashes -- for the first offense. The Australian movie, oddly enough, is about an actress in Iran who is forced to live a secret life in order to...
- 10/12/2011
- by Joshua L. Weinstein
- The Wrap
Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr has been sentenced to 90 lashes for her role in the 2009 Australian film My Tehran for Sale. The actress, who was arrested in July and sentenced by the court this past weekend, appeared in the movie without a headscarf on and a shaved head, and the story involved both drug use and an observation of Iran's oppressive ways.
In a cruel twist of irony, Vafamehr played the lead in the film, also named Marzieh, an actress in Tehran whose theatre work is banned by the government, forcing her to lead a secret life in order to pursue her passions. One night she meets a fellow Iranian named Saman who now resides in Australia and offers her a chance to also escape the everyday fears of being who you want to be that come with living there.
Continue reading for more and to see a trailer for My Tehran for Sale.
In a cruel twist of irony, Vafamehr played the lead in the film, also named Marzieh, an actress in Tehran whose theatre work is banned by the government, forcing her to lead a secret life in order to pursue her passions. One night she meets a fellow Iranian named Saman who now resides in Australia and offers her a chance to also escape the everyday fears of being who you want to be that come with living there.
Continue reading for more and to see a trailer for My Tehran for Sale.
- 10/11/2011
- by The Movie God
- Geeks of Doom
Marzieh Vafamehr also given one-year jail term for appearing in My Tehran for Sale with a shaved head and without a hijab
For one Iranian actor, life is mirroring art, in the most gruesome of ways. Two years ago Marzieh Vafamehr starred in a film about an actor whose theatre work is banned in Iran.
Now she faces a year in prison and 90 lashes after Iranian officials took exception to the film, which is itself banned inside the country.
Her crime? Appearing in an Australian film which is critical of the Islamic regime with her head uncovered.
Vafamehr, wife of the acclaimed film-maker Nasser Taghvai, was arrested in July after starring in My Tehran for Sale, which touches on many of the taboo issues of modern life in Iran.
"A sentence of one year in jail and 90 lashes has been issued for Marzieh Vafamehr," said a report published on Kaleme.
For one Iranian actor, life is mirroring art, in the most gruesome of ways. Two years ago Marzieh Vafamehr starred in a film about an actor whose theatre work is banned in Iran.
Now she faces a year in prison and 90 lashes after Iranian officials took exception to the film, which is itself banned inside the country.
Her crime? Appearing in an Australian film which is critical of the Islamic regime with her head uncovered.
Vafamehr, wife of the acclaimed film-maker Nasser Taghvai, was arrested in July after starring in My Tehran for Sale, which touches on many of the taboo issues of modern life in Iran.
"A sentence of one year in jail and 90 lashes has been issued for Marzieh Vafamehr," said a report published on Kaleme.
- 10/11/2011
- by Saeed Kamali Dehghan
- The Guardian - Film News
Australian filmmakers have offered their support to Iranian actress, Marzieh Vafamehr, who has been sentenced to one year in prison and ninety lashes for her role in the film My Tehran for Sale. The charges against Vafamehr, who was originally arrested in July of this year, remain unclear but the film.s Australian producers, Julie Ryan and Kate Croser of Cyan Films, believe they relate to scenes in which the actress appears with a shaved head and no headscarf. My Tehran for Sale, which won the 2009 If Independent Spirit Award, tells the story of Marzieh (Vafamehr), an actress struggling under her country's controls over artistic expression. The government has banned her work, and her romance with an Iranian-Australian expat (Amir Chegini) leads her to consider life outside...
- 10/11/2011
- by Danii Logue
- IF.com.au
The Australian filmmakers and investors behind My Tehran For Sale are deeply shocked and appalled at the news of Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr's sentence over the weekend. The actress was sentenced to a year in prison and 90 lashes for her role in the South Australian-produced movie critical of the Islamic republic's hard-line policies. The film, which was shot on location in Tehran in 2008, sees Vafamehr (a real life friend of director Granaz Moussavi) play a stage actress struggling to reconcile her love for her country with her desire for cultural freedom. After meeting an Iranian man with Australian citizenship, she begins planning to escape - first by orderly means and then via ways that see her in detention.
- 10/11/2011
- FilmInk.com.au
Surprise, Surprise: In a rare, work-in-progress "secret screening" last night, the New York Film Festival debuted Hugo, Martin Scorsese's 3D children's film (pictured above, not in true 3D). The director introduced the screening; audience reaction was evidently favorable; the film will be released to the general public on November 23. Movies was in attendance, and you can check out our initial reaction here. Iranian Actress Sentenced: Opposition website Kalameh.com reports that actress Marzieh Vafamehr has been sentenced to one year in prison and 90 lashes for appearing without a hijab headscarf in My Tehran for Sale, a film critical of Iran's policies. (AP via CBS News) Theaters Strike Back: Open rebellion by exhibitors continues against...
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- 10/11/2011
- by Peter Martin
- Movies.com
Marzieh Vafamehr will also be jailed for starring in controversial film.
In a continuation of their crackdown on perceived dissident filmmakers, the Iranian courts have sentenced actress Marzieh Vafamehr to 90 lashes and a year in prison for starring in a film about censorship. Vafamehr, who is married to director Nasser Taghvai, has been condemned in part because she appeared in one scene without wearing a hijab.
The film, My Tehran For Sale, was made by an Australian company but included filming done in the Iranian capital. It explores issues relating to Iran's censorship...
In a continuation of their crackdown on perceived dissident filmmakers, the Iranian courts have sentenced actress Marzieh Vafamehr to 90 lashes and a year in prison for starring in a film about censorship. Vafamehr, who is married to director Nasser Taghvai, has been condemned in part because she appeared in one scene without wearing a hijab.
The film, My Tehran For Sale, was made by an Australian company but included filming done in the Iranian capital. It explores issues relating to Iran's censorship...
- 10/11/2011
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
An Iranian actress has been sentenced to a year in jail and 90 cane lashes for her role in an Australian-produced movie. Marzieh Vafamehr appeared in 2009 film My Tehran For Sale. The movie, which told the story of an Iranian actress who is forbidden from stage performing by the authorities, was later banned in Tehran. However, Vafamehr was arrested in July this year along with an Iranian filmmaker when black market copies of the movie began circulating around the capital city. My Tehran for Sale premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival two years ago. The event director Katrina Sedgwick told The ABC: "There is always somewhat of a risk for filmmakers in that country when they're exploring ideas that are complex and even quite subtly political. (more)...
- 10/11/2011
- by By Rebecca Davies
- Digital Spy
Over the weekend, Iran released two of the six filmmakers arrested for suspicion of working for the BBC--and sentenced Iranian actress Marzieh Vafamehr to a year in jail and 90 lashes for starring in the Australian production "My Tehran for Sale," which premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Directed by Granaz Moussavi and shot entirely in Tehran, "My Tehran for Sale," stars Vafamehr as a stage actress who ...
- 10/10/2011
- Indiewire
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