His new film, The seed of the sacred fig, is in the selection of the Cannes Film Festival this year. The famous Iranian filmmaker Mohammed Rasoulof whose latest film will be shown at the Cannes Film Festival, was sentenced to five years in prison by an Iranian court, his lawyer announced this Wednesday, May 8. The director, awarded several times at international festivals, was also sentenced to lashes, a fine and the confiscation of his property, said Mr. Babak Paknia.
This judgment was not announced by official Iranian media. His lawyer said the court imposed a prison sentence of eight years, with five years applicable, and that judgment was upheld on appeal on an unspecified date.
Mohammed Rasoulof 52 years old, was arrested in July 2022 for encouraging demonstrations sparked after the collapse of a building that killed more than 40 people in May in southwest Iran. After this tragedy, a group of Iranian filmmakers led by Mohammed Rasoulof had published an open letter calling on the security forces “to lay down your arms” in the face of national outrage against “Corruption” And “incompetence” those responsible.
He was invited to Cannes in 2023 as a member of a jury, but was unable to make the trip due to a travel ban.
The 77th Cannes Film Festival, which begins May 14 in the south of France, has added Mohammad Rasoulof’s new film, The seed of the sacred figin the selection. This filmmaker was the winner of the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes in 2017 (A man of integrity), then the Golden Bear in Berlin in 2020 (The devil does not exist).