Culture

RFL/RE – A film committee in Iran has collected a list of 100 Iranian cinematographers and music and theater artists who have been summoned, arrested, or banned from leaving the country in the last few months, Iranian media reported. In a report published on November 14, the Shargh newspaper wrote that the committee refused to publish the names of the …

Iranwire – One of Iran’s most prominent actresses has posted a picture of herself on Instagram without a headscarf to express support for nationwide anti-government protests. Taraneh Alidoosti held a Kurdish-language slogan of the protest movement reading “Jin. Jiyan. Azadi.” (Woman. Life. Freedom.) in a picture she shared with her 7.8 million followers on Instagram. Alidoosti is one of the …

Al-Monitor — Iranian security forces have arrested popular singer and social activist Toomaj Salehi in the western province of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari. The dissident rapper, who is commonly known by his first name, was reportedly taken along with a group of friends from the village of Gerd Bisheh to an unknown location. Toomaj had used his popular media platforms to speak against Iranian …

Al-Monitor — The 39th edition of the Tehran International Short Film Festival (TISFF), which is the oldest of its kind in Iran and the region, kicked off Oct. 19 in the Iranian capital amid controversy surrounding its timing and the board members’ attitude toward the anti-government protests since the death of Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in religious police custody …

VOA – An Iranian filmmaker said the Islamic republic barred him from travelling to the London Film Festival over his support for the protest movement sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini that he called a “great moment in history.” “I was prevented by the Iranian authorities from boarding my flight to London on Friday,” Mani Haghighi said in a …

Al-Monitor – The 79th edition of the Venice Film festival wrapped Sept. 10 with yet another prize for internationally acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, whose latest movie was a contender for the Golden Lion. It ended up with the Special Jury Prize, the third most prestigious after the Golden Lion and the Grand Jury. Panahi could not make it to the venue in person, …

RFL/RE – Iranian filmmaker Ali Ahmadzadeh has been arrested, the latest in a series of detentions of cultural and activist figures in Iran. Sources told RFERL’s Radio Farda that Ahmadzadeh was arrested in Tehran on August 30, after being summoned to security agencies several times in recent months.The reason for his arrest is not clear. However, he had recently finished production …

RFL/RE – Thousands of Iranians attended a funeral procession in Tehran for prominent poet Houshang Ebtehaj, whose life and work spans many of Iran’s political, cultural, and literary upheavals. Born in 1928, Ebtehaj, considered by many as the last living old-school Iranian poet, died on August 10 in Germany. According to his daughter Yalda Ebtahaj, the cause of death was kidney failure. …

RFL/RE – Iranian authorities have abruptly canceled dozens of music concerts and cultural events in recent weeks, the latest sign of authorities exerting more pressure on the country’s social and cultural spheres. Earlier this month, rights activist Maryam Karimbeigi was sentenced to more than three years in prison for attending a concert by a popular Iranian singer in Turkey. Days earlier, security agents halted …

Iranwire – Two more filmmakers, Majid Barzegar and Mohsen Amir-Yousefi, have been summoned by a security agency and indicted with political charges, it emerged on Wednesday. The indictments came in the midst of an officially-sanctioned drive to censor and intimidate Iranian filmmakers, linked to the now widely-circulated “put down your guns” open letter: a call to security forces to stand with protesters in Abadan that was signed …