|
Bahman
Ghobadi has been banned of shooting films in Iran! |
|
Kurd Net is NOT responsible of the content of the
article |
|
Bahman Ghobadi has been banned of shooting
films in Iran! 6.2.2007
By Devrim Lilic - Melbourne
|
|
|
|
February
6, 2007
The famous Kurdish director Bahman Ghobadi who has
been chosen as one of the top living 100 filmmakers
in the world last year will no longer be able to
shoot a film in Iran according to the decision of
Cinema Office of Iranian Culture and Islamic
Guidance Ministry. Ghobadi’s wrote an open letter at
his production company, Mij Film’s official web site
and stated that the banning is a nonsense decision.
Ghobadi said in his statement that he is banned of
shooting films just because of his Kurdish origin.
Interestingly Ghobadi’s last film ‘Nive Heyve’,
Kurdish for ‘Half Moon’, that won the best film
award at the 54th San Sebastian International Film
Festival in 2006, was banned in Iran on the basis
that it was a separatist film. It is expected that
the banning of Ghobadi will attract international
reaction from all over the world, especially from
the artistic community.
“Don’t shoot the film in Kurdish”
Although the decision of Iranian Culture Ministry
does not articulate the reason of banning it seems
the ‘Kurdishness’ in Ghobadi’s films is to blame. |
The famous Kurdish director Bahman Ghobadi |
Ghobadi said in his letter that he will oppose the
decision and asks the ministry to abandon the
banning as soon as possible otherwise he will shoot
his films in an appropriate country. Ghobadi stated;
“A while ago to my utmost disbelief I saw a piece of
news on a cinema website stating that the public
relations office of the Cinema Department in the
Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has
announced the following statement: "Under current
circumstances and according to numerous reasons and
based on regulations production of any film by
Bahman Ghobadi is not within the professional
filmmaking agenda of the General Censors Office". My
disbelief was affirmed when I saw the Islamic
Republic official seal and title of the Ministry of
Guidance at the bottom of the letter.” Ghobadi said
that the banning is its first kind which occurs in
Iran after the Islamic Revolution in 1979. According
to Ghobadi once he made the inquiry about the
banning the officers at Cinema Department denied the
decision and said it was a misunderstanding but when
he asked to make an official announcement about the
misunderstanding they did not do anything. Ghobadi
stated “That means to say something verbally but act
differently, that ultimately it means confirmation
of the so called misunderstanding, that I am
prohibited from working.”
Ghobadi states that the problems have started when
first attempted to shoot Half Moon as he was
informally advised “not to make the film in
Kurdish”. Ghobadi said in his letter “I sensed a
rise of problems resulting from sort of a dictating
mind frame that ended in refusing to give the
negative stock and cameras that were collecting dust
in the storage. If I can excuse what went on before,
by no means I can forbear what is developing now. It
has been several months now that under vague
pretexts the Censors Office has evaded the issuance
of a screening permit for Half Moon. I have cut the
film short several times to these gentlemen’s taste
and the short versions are available too. Each time,
however, it has taken theses gentlemen weeks to
respond after which the vicious circle has just
repeated.”
Could not start to shoot his new film
Moreover it is learnt that Ghobadi could not start
to shoot his last project which does not have
anything to do with Kurdish and Kurdistan. The film
would be taking place in Tehran but Cinema
Department officers has not yet issued production
permit. Ghobadi stated that the stance of Cinema
Department reveals “a wave of hostility towards” him
some other directors: “This is why the multiple
mention of the pre-revolution actor whose presence
in an Iranian film I have officially denied and said
that his presence will depend on obtaining official
permission from the Censors Office, is only an
excuse in the hands of those attempting to suppress
differing ideas. I do reserve the right for myself
though, that if production conditions are not
provided in Iran I will make the film with my
intended actor in any country that will render
suitable.”
Separatist films, separatist director!
Additionally Ghobadi said that he was accused of
being separatist because of his last feature film
Half Moon, by the Censors Office. Ghobadi said he is
an Iranian Kurd but against the disintegration of
even an inch of Iran. As said by Ghobadi after being
labeled as separatist a national Iranian newspaper
published a broad article against him. The rest of
Ghobadi’s statement as follows: “Interestingly, the
newspaper that does not tolerate any other voice but
their own opinions publishes a detailed report
against me clearly attesting to a wave of anger
towards me whose name has appeared among the 100 top
directors in the world listed in a book by the
reputable Taschen publications. This anger though,
deems more of an excuse to instigate the controversy
on my behalf that I am a separatist, and a member of
the Censor Office, apparently himself a director, is
among the interviewees in this report making
irrelevant statements to the unaware-of-the subject
public to undermine my reputation in their mind.
Truly, is this an act of separatism by the member of
the Censor Office or is it my predestined situation
as an Iranian Kurd? Obviously, a tendency seems to
exist attempting to eliminate many successful
filmmakers such as myself and others to make room
for the so called minions. But these gentlemen
ignore the fact that I, as an artist have not
stepped into this domain on someone else’s request
or desire in the first place to be pressed to back
off. As an Iranian Kurdish filmmaker with
international reputation I have remained silent
although my work has been halted for months. And
this silence each time has provoked these gentlemen
to become more reckless and feel more powerful. Now,
however, I warn you that according to the
Constitution, no person, organization or institution
can stop me from my professional conduct.
The whole entity of the Cinema Department is formed
on the basis of our presence as filmmakers and its
existence leans on our activities not vice versa.
But now our servitors in an organization whose
fundamental duty involves serving the art and
artists and facilitate our working conditions,
requests individuals like me to serve their purposes
because my only fault is that I am a Kurd. The
statement therefore, by the Censors office is
entirely meaningful: "Due to numerous problems and
according to regulations, production of any film by
Bahman Ghobadi is not within the working agenda of
this office." I will not forget and neither will
history, nor I caution you not to forget that time
is the greatest of all judges. The history of this
land and its cinema will someday judge as to what
futile efforts you have undertaken to direct the
minds of the artists like me towards what you
believe is right. The three decade precedence of
post-revolution cinema has not become so distant for
you to forget that use of force and exercise of
power that only lasts a short while will not make
you succeed at molding any artists including myself
to your own taste. Now as filmmaker, I warn you that
if the Censors Office in the Ministry of Culture and
Islamic Guidance refuses to issue permit for the
making of my new film, I will personally take action
and start its shooting in the streets of Tehran, for
them to come and collect my equipments so that I can
see based on what bogus new law they will brake the
hands of my camera and blind the eyes of my film.”
The fact is that this is not the first time Ghobadi
facing restriction from the Iranian censors. When
Bahman Ghobadi completed his second feature film,
-“Marooned in Iraq’ originally titled as ‘The Songs
of My Motherland’- and applied for screening
permission for the film he has been told by Iranian
authorities that the original title of the film,
“The Songs of My Motherland” was too “nationalist”.
The authorities advised him to change the title but
Ghobadi resisted keeping the original title. As a
result of this dilemma his second feature, which
later titled by the distribution company as
“Marooned in Iraq”, was only screened in one theater
in Iran in the city of Tehran, apart from Kurdistan
region of Iran.
Likewise young Iranian woman director Samira
Makmalbaf’s second feature film “Blackboards” made
in 2000, which tells the plight of Kurdish teachers
and victims of Halabja massacre wandering on the
mountains of Kurdistan, had faced same kind of
trouble because of its Kurdish content and thus the
film had to be smuggled out of Iraq and completed in
Italy.
kurdishcinema.com
Top |
|
|
|
® 