{"id":3848,"date":"2025-01-17T05:58:01","date_gmt":"2025-01-17T05:58:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/codir.net\/?p=3848"},"modified":"2025-01-17T05:58:02","modified_gmt":"2025-01-17T05:58:02","slug":"mohammad-rasoulof-the-iranian-filmmaker-persecuted-by-the-regime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/codir.net\/?p=3848","title":{"rendered":"Mohammad Rasoulof, the Iranian filmmaker persecuted by the regime"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/author\/gregorio-belinchon\/#?rel=author_top\">Gregorio Belinch\u00f3n<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Madrid &#8211;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/archive\/2025-01-15\/\"><abbr title=\"January\">JAN<\/abbr>&nbsp;15, 2025 &#8211; 06:24<abbr title=\"1\/15\/2025, CST\">&nbsp;CST<\/abbr><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He had only two hours to decide: exile or prison? \u201cThe secret service was interrogating the film crew, and on top of that, the Islamic Revolutionary Court announced that day that within a week, they would carry out the sentence condemning me to eight years in prison, plus a flogging and confiscation of my property,\u201d recalls<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/culture\/2023-10-27\/the-iranian-filmmakers-defying-repression-and-religious-fanaticism.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&nbsp;Iranian filmmaker<\/a>&nbsp;Mohammad Rasoulof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For years, Rasoulof, 52, had been one of the most outspoken critics of the Ayatollah regime, so much so that he was convicted of \u201cintending to commit crimes against the security of the country.\u201d This marked the end of a long journey of opposing the government, along with multiple stints in prison and house arrest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With his family safe, Rasoulof said goodbye to his plants (\u201cmy most prized possession\u201d), looked out at the mountains from his Tehran window, asked a friend for money, left all his electronic devices behind to avoid being traced, and contacted a member of a network he had met in prison that helps persecuted individuals escape the country. \u201cI went into exile, something I had never even considered.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG - Official Trailer\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/A3P53zHCPJU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Rasoulof knew from the outset of filming&nbsp;<em>The Seed of the Sacred Fig&nbsp;<\/em>that he was sabotaging his life in Iran. Sitting in the cafeteria of the Maria Cristina hotel in September during the San Sebasti\u00e1n Film Festival, where the film was presented in the Perlak section, his story took on a bittersweet tone. He arrived in Hamburg on May 10, 28 days after fleeing Tehran. He had studied film in Germany as a young man, and his daughter, the actress Baran Rasoulof, lives there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since then, he has left Germany several times. At the end of May, he appeared at&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/culture\/2024-05-14\/cannes-film-festival-kicks-off-amid-french-metoo-and-threat-of-workers-strike.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cannes<\/a>, where his film closed the competition and won a special mention from the jury. In September, he presented the drama at the San Sebasti\u00e1n Film Festival, and he traveled to the New York and Busan (South Korea) festivals in November. He was also in Los Angeles during the Golden Globes ceremony.&nbsp;<em>The Seed of the Sacred Fig&nbsp;<\/em>is representing Germany at the Oscars, as it is a co-production. Rasoulof emphasizes the importance of his editor, Andrew Bird, a British expatriate living in Germany, to the film\u2019s outcome and to his personal life. \u201cAs I was filming, I was sending him the material because I knew it would be safe with him,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imagenes.elpais.com\/resizer\/v2\/TGWH4Z244FG7XGFADEKPG633PQ.jpg?auth=86e17500e7c90333ad22935c89fa17ffbd46bf8bed7eaddf5cc7437d6fd0fe02&amp;width=414\" alt=\"An image from 'The Seed of the Sacred Fig,' by Mohammad Rasoulof.\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An image from &#8216;The Seed of the Sacred Fig,&#8217; by Mohammad Rasoulof.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Although he has never sought to assume the role of a political spokesperson, Rasoulof has faced numerous hardships due to his commitment. He was arrested in 2010 for filming a movie about the Green Movement (the protests following the 2009 presidential elections), which he never finished. And in 2021, he was placed under house arrest in 2021. During the promotion of his previous film,&nbsp;<em>There Is No Evil<\/em>, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, he had to participate in the event via video call from a back room of his home in Shiraz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2022, he was sent to prison for seven months after signing a critical petition against the government. While incarcerated, he met another Berlinale-winning filmmaker, Jafar Panahi, and together they listened to the stories of how women formed the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/international\/2023-02-10\/protests-in-iran-transform-into-a-women-led-civil-disobedience-movement.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Women, Life, Freedom movement<\/a>&nbsp;after the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/international\/2022-09-23\/video-iranian-women-cut-their-hair-burn-hijabs-in-solidarity-with-mahsa-amini.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">police murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini<\/a>, who had been arrested for not wearing her hijab correctly. This led to a widespread uprising against the oppression of the regime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imagenes.elpais.com\/resizer\/v2\/J5YIUNLSWBB6TOA6D2HSUJBCDI.jpg?auth=631984724fb06a5103fa7ee306beea31816912f9286b8dca971ee1c10345d830&amp;width=414\" alt=\"Mohammad Rasoulof on the set of 'There Is No Evil.'\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mohammad Rasoulof on the set of &#8216;There Is No Evil.&#8217;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTwo curious things happened to me in prison,\u201d Rasoulof recalls. \u201cOne was that I discovered the jailers were watching pirated copies of&nbsp;<em>There Is No Evil<\/em>. The other was when one of the interrogators gave me a pen and told me that every time he entered prison and heard the door close, he remembered his children\u2019s questions about what he did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is how&nbsp;<em>The Seed of the Sacred Fig&nbsp;<\/em>was born. The film begins as a family drama, with the family celebrating the father\u2019s promotion at work, where he\u2019s appointed as a judicial investigator, a step toward potentially becoming a judge. But then the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/international\/2024-03-08\/iran-committed-crimes-against-humanity-during-repression-of-protests-over-mahsa-aminis-death-un-fact-finding-mission-says.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wave of protests<\/a>&nbsp;following Amini\u2019s death erupts, and the wife and two daughters begin questioning the world around them. The spiral of violence reaches their home when one of the girls\u2019 friends is brutally beaten. Meanwhile, what is the father doing at work? Why is he not answering his phone? At this point, the film shifts into a state of terror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imagenes.elpais.com\/resizer\/v2\/ZHAJACVFIRCC7LQ6Q7SEVELCO4.jpg?auth=cad9f6f758f1e42e77fc69c26f3c13f89d0f93562b3ab84a40d169c7401af75c&amp;width=414\" alt=\"Baran Rasoulof, actress and daughter of Mohammad, holds up a smartphone at the 2020 Berlinale so that her father can answer questions from journalists after winning the Golden Bear for 'There Is No Evil.'\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Baran Rasoulof, actress and daughter of Mohammad, holds up a smartphone at the 2020 Berlinale so that her father can answer questions from journalists after winning the Golden Bear for &#8216;There Is No Evil.&#8217;Berlinale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The filmmaker explains that he knew from the beginning that he was tightening the government\u2019s grip on him. In his previous films, he had conveyed political and social messages, and he was aware he was being watched. He even grew a beard for the filming of&nbsp;<em>There Is No Evil<\/em>&nbsp;so no one would recognize him during the outdoor shoots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t go near the street scenes for&nbsp;<em>The Seed of the Sacred Fig&nbsp;<\/em>to avoid drawing attention. In fact, many passers-by and even the police thought it was a government film and didn\u2019t bother me,\u201d he smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the end of the shoot, the sentence was handed down. \u201cI asked my lawyers how much time we would gain if we appealed, and they told me that with the Muslim New Year festivities and the usual bureaucratic delays, two months would pass \u2014 just enough time to finish the film,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imagenes.elpais.com\/resizer\/v2\/VOQSUIKUZ5G3ZNC4D7ZRGHI6OM.jpg?auth=0e8c6f4e290a4b0e3f7db36c8b4514c2e6644ec6f225979ff255488739fc60b8&amp;width=414\" alt=\"Mahsa Rostami (l) and Setareh Maleki (r), the two daughters in Mohammad Rasoulof's 'Seed of the Sacred Fig,' with Missagh Zareh, who plays the father, in the background.\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mahsa Rostami (l) and Setareh Maleki (r), the two daughters in Mohammad Rasoulof&#8217;s &#8216;Seed of the Sacred Fig,&#8217; with Missagh Zareh, who plays the father, in the background.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;<em>The Seed of the Sacred Fig<\/em>, Rasoulof reflects on how, despite widespread protests, the ayatollahs remain in power: \u201cDictatorial systems succeed and are maintained over time not because of the leaders, but because of the middle management who carry out and often amplify their orders. The regime is using religion as a political tool, and my films focus on this indoctrination. The Islamic Republic is a dictatorship that has taken Iranians hostage; repression is its essence. Any announcement of change is just propaganda.\u201d Is he in danger himself? \u201cIf they can, they will eliminate any opponent, but I don\u2019t spend a second of my life thinking about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the first time, women take center stage in Rasoulof\u2019s film. \u201cThey are the ones who are keeping the fight for freedom alive, the ones who inspire the rest of us. I\u2019m under no illusion: the battle for human rights in Iran is almost<a href=\"https:\/\/english.elpais.com\/international\/2022-09-25\/iranian-women-defy-the-ayatollahs-the-system-feels-threatened-many-young-women-are-angry.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&nbsp;entirely in the hands of women<\/a>. Soheila Golestani, who plays the mother, was imprisoned for 12 days in November 2022 after posting a protest video in which she appeared without a veil. Only the actresses who play the daughters could accompany me to Cannes, as the passports of the rest of the cast and crew were withheld.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imagenes.elpais.com\/resizer\/v2\/EG2H7UA4TEUS3MN5UFSVOEYOTE.jpg?auth=bccb300f6e075f3d0de6eb550f164981c63552c5601856a4ef4cd78702a9cb3f&amp;width=414\" alt=\"Mahsa Rostami (r) and Setareh Maleki (l) hold photos of their co-stars in the film, Missagh Zareh and Soheila Golestani, alongside Mohammad Rasoulof at the Cannes premiere of 'Seed of the Sacred Fig Tree' in May.\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mahsa Rostami (r) and Setareh Maleki (l) hold photos of their co-stars in the film, Missagh Zareh and Soheila Golestani, alongside Mohammad Rasoulof at the Cannes premiere of &#8216;Seed of the Sacred Fig Tree&#8217; in May.ANDRE PAIN (EFE)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For years, Rasoulof was highly critical of the more passive filmmakers, particularly singling out two-time Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi for his timid comments on the repression in Iran. \u201cAfter the women\u2019s rebellion, many artists, actresses, actors, and directors stopped being ambiguous. The question became clear: do you support the values of this system or not? I saw this shift even in my own case; I thought I would struggle to find actors for the film, but the opposite happened: there were plenty of volunteers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And now what? \u201cI still feel a bit lost outside Iran. I am from the south, very much my homeland. I never wanted to consider exile. But when I was sentenced, I sensed that sooner or later I would have to face it. Staying meant accepting censorship or becoming a filmmaker-victim. However, I only left when I knew I could continue creating abroad. If there were no possibilities to make more films, I would not have left. But sooner or later, I will return.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"share-this\">\n                    <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share\"\nclass=\"twitter-share-button\"\ndata-count=\"horizontal\">Tweet<\/a>\n                    <script type=\"text\/javascript\"\nsrc=\"http:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\"><\/script>\n                    <div class=\"facebook-share-button\">\n                        <iframe\nsrc=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/like.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fcodir.net%2F%3Fp%3D3848&amp;layout=button_count&amp;show_faces=false&amp;width=200&amp;action=like&amp;colorscheme=light&amp;height=21\"\nscrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;\noverflow:hidden; width:200px; height:21px;\"\nallowTransparency=\"true\"><\/iframe>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The director, who has been exiled in Germany since May, releases \u2018The Seed of the Sacred Fig,\u2019 a portrayal of the Women, Life Freedom movement in Iran and how dictatorships are sustained by middle management<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-news-analysis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3848"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3851,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3848\/revisions\/3851"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/codir.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}