Sunday, April 19, 2026

‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ Movie, With Farahani, Gets Cannes Festival Showcase

By Firouzeh Nabavi Iranian talents are in the spotlight at the Cannes Film Festival, the glamorous 11-day event that opened this week on the French Riviera and runs through May 27. The movie adaptation of...

Jailed Iranian Filmmaker Panahi Wins Jury Prize at Venice Film Festival

By Ahmad Rafat Jafar Panahi’s “No Bears” (Khers Nist) won the Special Jury Prize last weekend at the Venice Film Festival, in a demonstration of solidarity with detained Iranian filmmakers such as himself. In the festival’s...

Glenn Close to Star in ‘Tehran,’ Israeli Espionage Series, Playing A British Woman

By Nazanine Nouri Glenn Close -- the eight-time Oscar nominee, best known for her role in the 1987 movie “Fatal Attraction” – will be starring in Season 2 of “Tehran,” the Israeli espionage series on...
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Iranian Directors Including Rasoulof In the Spotlight at Toronto Film Festival

By Ahmad Rafat Mohammad Rasoulof, the Iranian filmmaker who secretly escaped Iran earlier this year, is back in the spotlight at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) with “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” which...

Who is Mohammad Rasoulof, Winner of the Berlin Film Festival’s Golden Bear Award?

By Nazanine Nouri The 70th Berlin International Film Festival this year gave its top award -- the Golden Bear -- to the awardwinning Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof for his new movie “There Is No Evil.” Rasoulof...

At Sundance Festival, Directors Maryam Keshavarz, Noora Niasari Win Audience Awards

By Firouzeh Nabavi Two female directors of Iranian descent – Maryam Keshavarz and Noora Niasari – won audience awards at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, which ended Sunday. https://twitter.com/iraniansinfilm/status/1619062770141634560?cxt=HHwWgIDRtdzAiPgsAAAA “The Persian Version,” directed by Keshavarz –...

Porn Documentary “XSunami” Screened in Iranian Holy City of Mashhad

By Azadeh Karimi Some 300 people attended the invitation-only premiere of a feature-length documentary film titled “XSunami” ("Memoirs of a Porn Star") at the Hoveyze Multiplex Cinema in the holy city of Mashhad, capital of...
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Afghan Rockers Meet Metallica In Award-Winning Iranian Movie

By Fred Parvaneh "Radio Dreams," the award-winning film by Babak Jalali, had its LA premiere on May 7. Produced by Marjaneh Moghimi, the movie is centered around a quest by Kabul Dreams – Afghanistan's first...

PROFILE: Venice Festival Awardwinner Shahram Mokri Makes Film About Cinema Fire

By Nazanine Nouri This year’s Venice Film Festival gave a prestigious award to the Iranian director Shahram Mokri: He won the best original screenplay award in the festival’s parallel ‘Orizzonti’ section for his latest film,...
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‘The Persians’ by Sanam Mahloudji Is Nominated for UK’s Women’s Prize for Fiction

By Nazanine Nouri “The Persians” – the debut novel by the Iranian-born American author, U.K.-based Sanam Mahloudji has been shortlisted for the 30th Women’s Prize for Fiction, the U.K.’s leading award for female novelists. The prize...