Iran summons French envoy after FM's Cannes comments
Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi (left) speaking on stage after winning the Palme d'Or for the film Un Simple Accident (A Simple Accident), watched by Juliette Binoche (right) and Cate Blanchett (second to right). PHOTO: EPA-EFE
TEHRAN - France's envoy in Tehran was summoned May 25 over 'insulting' comments by France's foreign minister after an Iranian film won the top prize at the Cannes film festival, state media reported.
In a post on X after dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or on May 24, Mr Jean-Noel Barrot called his victory 'a gesture of resistance against the Iranian regime's oppression'.
Mr Panahi, 64, was awarded the Palme d'Or for the political drama It Was Just an Accident – a film in which five Iranians confront a man they believe tortured them in prison.
Several actresses also appear in the film without veils, in violation of Iran's strict dress code for women.
'Following the insulting remarks and unfounded allegations by the French minister... the charge d'affaires of that country in Tehran has been summoned to the ministry,' state news agency Irna reported on May 25.
It said Iran condemns 'the misuse by the French government' of the Cannes festival 'to advance its political agenda against the Islamic Republic'.
A story inspired by his own time in detention, Mr Panahi's film led critics' polls throughout the week at Cannes.
Mr Panahi's victory had been ignored by the state broadcaster, which instead focused on a state-aligned 'Resistance' film festival.
This event awards pro-Palestinian works or those about the eight-year Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.
The conservative Fars news agency had suggested the Cannes jury's choice was politically motivated, saying it was 'not uninfluenced by the political issues surrounding Jafar Panahi inside Iran'.
Reformist newspapers Etemad, Shargh and Ham Mihan reported the win on their websites but did not feature it on their front pages, possibly due to the timing of the announcement.
Mr Panahi, who has been banned from filmmaking in Iran since 2010 and jailed multiple times, addressed the Cannes audience with a call for national unity.
He confirmed plans to go home to Iran immediately. Asked late May 24 if he feared arrest, he said: 'Not at all. Tomorrow we are leaving.'
On May 25, he posted an Instagram picture of himself with his film crew, saying: 'Travellers return home.'
It was only the second time an Iranian director has won the Palme d'Or, after the late Abbas Kiarostami received the honour for Taste of Cherry in 1997.
Both directors faced bans throughout their careers. AFP
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