Imprisoned Iranian Director Jafar Panahi’s ‘No Bears’ Acquired for U.S. by Sideshow, Janus Films

Women and girls of Iran are leading the most significant challenge to the existence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in this century, according to veteran experts of Iran.  Their opposition to the theocratic state and its radical Islamic law requiring head coverings for women has drawn sharp criticism with respect to Tehran’s role on the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women.

U.S. citizen Siamak Namazi is back in an Iranian prison today after being temporarily released by authorities in Tehran earlier this month.  Waving Iran flag above skyline of Tehran at sunset.  (istock) "His furlough, which started on October 1, was renewable and had already been renewed once on October 8," a statement released by Namazi's pro bono counsel Jared Genser explained.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Japanese director Kawase Naomi will lead the international competition jury of the 44th Cairo International Film Festival (Nov. 13-22). Kawase won the Caméra d’Or for best debut feature film at Cannes for “Moe no Suzaku” (1997) and also won awards there for “Mogari no Mori” (2007) and “Hikari” (2017). In 2000, her film “Hotaru” won the FIPRESCI award at Locarno. Cairo festival president Hussein Fahmy said that Kawase has had a distinguished career and possesses great experience that qualified her to obtain prestigious awards from various international festivals.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., drew comparisons between women risking their lives to protest Islamic law in Iran to women fighting for abortion rights in the United States. During a campaign rally to re-elect Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Friday, Omar said pro-life Republicans are challenging women’s bodily autonomy, much like Iran’s oppressive clerical regime led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor One of the new honors the Grammy Awards will introduce at their next ceremony is song for social change — a special-merit award that “recognizes creators of message-driven music that responds to the social issues of our time and has the potential for positive global impact.” While the honor is “curated by a blue-ribbon committee,” there’s little question that the number of submissions will have an impact — and according to the Recording Academy, 95,000 of the 115,000 submissions received have been for Iranian musician Shervin Hajipour’s song, “Baraye,” a protest song about 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody after being arrested and beaten by Iran’s so-called morality police for not wearing a proper head covering, in line with the country’s Islamic law.

Dua Lipa has expressed support for the women of Iran following protests in the nation. The Levitating singer took to Instagram on Saturday to bring attention to the demonstrations, which have been staged to highlight the death of Mahsa Amini. Last month, the 22-year-old passed away in a hospital in Tehran under suspicious circumstances.

https://t.co/TxjviH4neK pic.twitter.com/8MBhDgmKgx— Ghoncheh (@GhonchehAzad) October 9, 2022The @EventimApollo in Hammersmith was evacuated this evening following a security alert. Officers are in the area to support staff and to facilitate the safe departure of those who were in attendance at the venue.

Sevdaliza, a Dutch-Iranian experimental pop songwriter who was born in Tehran, has shared “Woman Life Freedom,” a new song that was written “in support of women in Iran,” according to a press statement. Iran is currently gripped by protests which began over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, a woman who was reportedly killed by the country’s Morality Police in September over a violation of the country’s mandatory hijab law.

Dua Lipa has shared her support for women in Iran following a number of recent protests in the country.The musician posted on Instagram yesterday (October 8) to share a post about the recent deaths of young women in Iran as protests continue following the death of Masha Amini, 22.Amini died in Tehran earlier last month (September 16) after being arrested for not wearing her hijab in accordance with government standards. Police claimed she suffered heart failure at the station, although witnesses have claimed Amini was severely beaten by the authorities.Lipa shared a number of photos of women who have also since died on Instagram.

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Sunday that President Biden should not have been surprised that ministers from Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) decided to cut oil production – in fact, she implied it could have been done just to spite him.

a United Nations report, Amini was arrested on Sept. 13 and taken to a morality «re-education center» in Tehran where, per Iranian authorities, she died of a heart attack three days later.

The state broadcaster of Iran appeared to be hacked on air this weekend, including a news bulletin being interrupted with a protest.

Juliette Binoche, Marion Cotillard, Isabelle Huppert and other French actresses have cut their hair in solidarity with Iranian women. The trio joined 50 other French cinema icons such as Isabelle Adjani, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Alexandra Lamy to give themselves a haircut to express their support for the widespread civil unrest in Iran that was kickstarted by the state-sanctioned killing of the 22-year-old activist Mahsa Amini after she refused to follow the law forcing women to don the hijab on September 16. The video - which was hashtagged with the phrase Hair For Freedom and was posted on Wednesday (05.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Award-winning filmmakers Alice Diop (“Saint Omer”), Audrey Diwan (“Happening”), Julia Ducournau (“Titane”), Michel Hazanavicius (“The Artist”), Jacques Audiard (“Dheepan”), and actors Juliette Binoche, Marion Cotillard, Isabelle Huppert, Lea Seydoux are among nearly 1,000 prominent French film figures who have signed an open letter to support Iranian women and civil rights activists in their revolt over the death of 22 year-old Mahsa Amini, as well as denounce the “murderous violence” of the Iranian regime. Amini, a Kurdish woman, died in custody on Sept. 16, three days after being arrested in Tehran because she allegedly breached the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women. Her death has sparked protests across Iran, including in Tehran, Isfahan and Yazd, and in cities around the world, including in Paris, Istanbul and Los Angeles. Amnesty International said Iranian authorities have been “intentionally using lethal force against the protesters,” causing more than more 52 deaths (as of Sept. 30). The organization has urged international action “beyond statements of condemnation” to prevent more people from being killed.

Iranian director Jafar Panahi remains behind bars in Tehran but his cinema continues to travel.

arrested by Iranian authorities after he had inquired about the status of two other detained Iranian directors. The government has now forced him to serve out a six-year jail sentence originally issued to Panahi in December 2010. At that time, he was banned for 20 years from directing movies, writing screenplays or giving any form of interview with an Iranian or foreign press, though he has since showcased other films such as “This Is Not a Film,” “Closed Curtain,” “Taxi” and “3 Faces” in defiance of his order and state-attempted censorship.

Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi is imploring everyone worldwide to unite “in solidarity” with protesters following the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of Iran’s morality police.