Source: Mehr News Agency, Tehran
Filmmaker Asghar Farhadi whose latest remarks forced the Ministry of Culture and
Islamic Guidance to revoke the production license for his film "Separation of
Nader and Simin" broke his silence after a week, declaring his remarks were
misconstrued.
Asghar Farhadi
"My remarks (at the award presentation ceremony at the 14th
Iran Cinema Celebration on September 16) were both misquoted and misconstrued,"
he told the Persian service of ISNA on Tuesday.
During the award presentation ceremony, Farhadi had criticized Iranian cultural
policy for isolating a number of prominent cineastes, including Mohsen
Makhmalbaf, Jafar Panahi, Bahram Beizaii, Amir Naderi, and Golshifteh Farahani.
Deputy Culture Minister for Cinematic Affairs Javad Shamaqdari had said that
Farhadi's latest remarks forced them to make the decision.
The shooting of "Separation of Nader and Simin", which had begun in late August,
was halted after Culture Ministry Supervision and Evaluation Office (SEO)
Director Alireza Sajjadpur made the decision on Farhadi's film.
Farhadi was given a one-week opportunity to retract his remarks, but he refused
to do so and consequently, the decision was made about his film, Shamaqdari said
last week.
"This is not fair. Why were my remarks misunderstood? I respect the productions
by those filmmakers but I had nothing to do with their politics and political
viewpoints," Farhadi noted.
"I have always tried not to impose my personal opinions into my films and upon
the viewers of my movies. If I meant to do so, why would I have made these
remarks at the cinema celebration? There are so many international festivals
with many interviews in foreign countries where political opinions have greater
priority," he continued.
"Why would I choose the celebration here to publicize the opinions of those
individuals who I only know through their cinematic works in Iran and not their
political deeds," he said.
Iran's House of Cinema has been trying to mediate to resolve the problem but
their efforts seem to have gone nowhere.