TEHRAN, Feb. 13 (Mehr News Agency) -- Producers of the book and film "Iran, Seven Faces of a Civilization" were honored in a ceremony held at the Restoration and Renovation Research Center of the Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Organization (CHTHO) on Wednesday.

CHTHO director Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaii expressed his pleasure and said that the movie depicts ancient Iranian legends, the country's present situation, and also manages to glance into the future.

He went on to say, "The film proves that when a nation is given an opportunity, it can fill life with beautiful scenes."

He continued, "If our people and society had not undergone oppression throughout their history, not only our own nation, but the whole world would have benefited from Iran's progress."

Rahim-Mashaii further explained, the production "Iran, Seven Faces of a Civilization' must not only teach us to tolerate the situation which confronts us today, but also encourage us to think about improving conditions for others."

Director of the research center Taha Hashemi also paid tribute to the producers of the movie and said, "The cast went to a lot of trouble to interview Iranologists and experts on Iran's civilization whilst they were involved in this production. One feels overwhelmed on hearing non-Iranians talking about the beauty of our country."

Head of the crew Farzin Rezaiian, who also attended the ceremony said, "The film has been produced with the assistance of 70 researchers over the past 14 years, as well as the assistance of the CHTHO and the library of the National Museum of Iran."

He added that the film has been screened in 19 universities and cultural centers in the United States, although he added that it had not been made in response to the recent American movie "300", since the idea behind its production was conceived some 14 years ago.

Cinematographer Hossein Hazrati and head of the graphic design team Morteza Yahu were also honored at the ceremony which ended with a screening of the movie.