Latest news with #Rasoulof
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Mohammad Rasoulof On Why He Isn't In A Rush To Follow Up ‘The Seed Of The Sacred Fig' & His Plans To Return To Iran — Locarno
Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof says he is in no rush to set his next project following his Oscar-nominated drama The Seed of the Sacred Fig. But he may return to his native country sooner rather than later after more than a year in exile. The veteran dissident filmmaker spoke with Deadline on Monday afternoon at the Locarno Film Festival, where he made a surprise appearance to receive a new humanitarian award. More from Deadline Oscars: Germany Submits Mohammad Rasoulof's 'The Seed Of The Sacred Fig' For International Feature Film Race Mohammad Rasoulof Reveals How He Covertly Made 'The Seed Of The Sacred Fig', Risking His Life And His Freedom Locarno Pro Awards: 'Nina Roza' By Canadian Filmmaker Geneviève Dulude-De Celles Leads Winners Rasoulof is the first recipient of the Locarno City of Peace Award, created by the City of Locarno in collaboration with the festival. The award was established, the festival said in a statement, to 'honor figures from the cultural space who have distinguished themselves in promoting peace, diplomacy, and dialogue among peoples.' The jury for the first edition of the prize included Ruth Dreifuss, former President of the Swiss Confederation; Laura Sadis, member of the Assembly of the International Committee of the Red Cross; Marco Solari, Honorary President of the Locarno Film Festival; Raphaël Brunschwig, CEO of the Locarno Film Festival; and Nicola Pini, Mayor of the City of Locarno. Discussing Rasoulof, Locarno head Giona A. Nazzaro described the filmmaker's work as 'one of the highest and most accomplished expressions of a humanism that lucidly takes shape in the form of an exemplary cinematic gesture.' 'Resisiting the temptation to oversimplify the painful contradictions that afflict the relationship between institutions, power, and individuals, Rasoulof has, over the course of his exemplary career, created a body of work that stands as a hymn to human dignity,' Nazzaro said. Rasoulof screened The Seed of the Sacred Fig on the Piazza Grande at last year's Locarno Film Festival following a debut bow in Competition at Cannes. At that time, Rasoulof was only months into his exile in Europe after fleeing Iran to avoid a brutal eight-year prison sentence for covert filmmaking. Rasoulof has been living in Berlin since then. 'The Iran I left is very different from the Iran today. So much has happened since then,' Rasoulof explained through an interpreter. Below, the filmmaker speaks to us about his plans to return to Iran, the current legal status of his Seed of the Sacred Fig actors who were unable to leave Iran, and his life in Europe. Locarno ends August 16. DEADLINE: The Seed of the Sacred Fig MOHAMMAD RASOULOF: I feel like a father whose daughter has just gotten married and is wondering how to move on. Right now, I'm writing a script. I also recently worked on a play in Berlin, which toured with actresses from The Seed of the Sacred Fig. I've since received numerous job offers, so I'm not worried. I don't want to rush my next film, especially considering everything that has been happening inside Iran. DEADLINE: RASOULOF: The Iran I left is very different from the Iran today. So much has happened since then. When I left, I had an eight-year prison sentence, which would have stopped me from making films for a long time, so I was very keen on staying in Europe and making films. But the situation is so fast-changing in Iran. Now, my ability to return and work as a filmmaker there may actually happen sooner than I was anticipating. The Iranian parliament has just approved a law that abolishes prison sentences for those who had to leave Iran illegally. So the situation has already improved. DEADLINE: RASOULOF: It's been exceptional. I'm extremely happy to be in Germany. I feel safe. I have a profound sense of safety, which I did not have in Iran. Berlin is a fascinating city with an exceptional cultural offering, so it's interesting to live there. But there's one major problem: When I open a bottle of water to drink, for instance, I immediately think of the people in Iran who don't have drinking water at the moment. Or when it rains in Berlin, I think of the drought that has been affecting Iran so badly. It's a strange feeling. You're living this very comfortable life, but then all of a sudden, your heart is broken. DEADLINE: Seed of the Sacred Fig RASOULOF: The actors were sentenced to prison, but the extraordinary lawyers working on the case are trying to convert the prison sentences into an agreement whereby they would be able to pay fines instead of actually going to prison. DEADLINE: ? RASOULOF: There is an amazing group of artists working inside Iran at the moment, who have not yet been discovered by the international world. A number of them are filmmakers working in a very specific way on subjects that do not seem political at first, particularly around daily life in Iran. So I'm very excited for the work to be seen by the world. I'm optimistic. Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds A Full Timeline Of Blake Lively & Justin Baldoni's 'It Ends With Us' Feud In Court, Online & In The Media 'The Boys' Season 5: Everything We Know So Far Solve the daily Crossword
Arab Times
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Arab Times
Iranian revenge drama 'It Was Just an Accident' awarded Palme d'Or
CANNES, France, May 25, (AP): Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday for his revenge thriller "It Was Just an Accident," handing the festival's top prize to a director who had been banned from leaving Iran for more than 15 years. Cate Blanchett presented the award to Panahi, who three years ago was imprisoned in Iran before going on a hunger strike. For a decade and a half, he has made films clandestinely in his native country, including one film ("This Is Not a Film") made in his living room, and another ("Taxi") set in a car. The crowd rose in a thunderous standing ovation for the filmmaker, who immediately threw up his arms and leaned back in his seat in disbelief before applauding his collaborators and the audience around him. On stage, Panahi was cheered by Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche, who in 2010 in Cannes held up Panahi's name to honor the director when he was under house arrest. On stage, Panahi said what mattered most was freedom in his country. "Let us join forces,' said Panahi. "No one should dare tell us what kind of clothes we should wear, what we should do or what we should not do. The cinema is a society. Nobody is entitled to tell what we should or refrain from doing.' The win for "It Was Just an Accident' extended an unprecedented streak: The indie distributor Neon has now backed the last six Palme d'Or winners. The latest triumph for Neon, which acquired "It Was Just an Accident' for North American distribution after its premiere in Cannes, follows its Palmes for "Parasite,' "Titane,' "Triangle of Sadness,' "Anatomy of a Fall' and "Anora.' All those films were Oscar contenders and two, "Parasite' and "Anora,' won best picture. Last year, filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran to attend the premiere of his film in Cannes and resettle in Germany. Panahi, though, has said that unlike his friend Rasoulof, life in exile isn't for him. He planned to fly home to Tehran on Sunday. "It Was Just an Accident' was inspired by Panahi's experience in prison. In the film, a group of former prisoners encounter the man who terrorized them in jail, and weigh whether or not to kill him. Panahi was jailed in Tehran's Evin Prison after going there to inquire about the then-jailed Rasoulof. Panahi was released in 2023 after going on a hunger strike. In 2009, he was banned from traveling out of Iran after attending the funeral of a student killed in the Green Movement protests. Through those years, Panahi continued to make films illegally in Iran, without a permit, and had his films smuggled to festivals on USB drives. His travel ban was lifted after his release in 2023. "The film springs from a feeling of resistance, survival, which is absolutely necessary today,' Binoche told reporters after the ceremony. "Art will always win. What is human will always win.' The Cannes closing ceremony followed a major power outage that struck southeastern France on Saturday in what police suspected was arson. Only a few hours before stars began streaming down the red carpet, power was restored in Cannes. "A day without electricity," sighed John C. Reilly, who sang an English-language "La Vie En Rose' at the ceremony. The festival's films, he said, supplied "all the needed electricity." The Grand Prix, or second prize, was awarded to Joachim Trier's Norwegian family drama "Sentimental Value,' his lauded follow-up to "The Worst Person in the World.' Some had expected "Sentimental Value' to win the Palme, but Trier - whose film reunites him with actor Renate Reinsve - still took a major prize. "We live in a time of tremendous excess and saturation of images. Moving images are being thrown at us all the time," said Trier. "And I want to give homage to the Cannes Film Festival for being a place where the big cinematic image, which is the foundation of the moving image, the free image, the image that we take time to look at, the image where we can identify with each other in contemplation and empathy, to be cherished in this place in such a way is very important in this moment.' Kleber Mendonça Filho's Brazilian political thriller "The Secret Agent" won two big awards: best director for Filho and best actor for Wagner Moura. Though Cannes juries are generally urged to spread awards around, the two for "The Secret Agent' showed the jury's strong feelings for it. Asked about the two prizes, juror Jeremy Strong explained, simply, "That was our wish.' The wins, which followed the international film Oscar victory for Walter Salles' "I'm Still Here' in March, gave Brazil more to celebrate. On X, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the awards "show that our country's cinema is second to none.' The jury prize was split between two films: Óliver Laxe's desert road trip "Sirât " and Mascha Schilinski's German, generation-spanning drama "Sound of Falling.' Best actress went to Nadia Melliti for "The Little Sister,' Hafsia Herzi's French coming-of-age drama. The Belgian brothers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, who are two-time Palme d'Or winners, won best screenplay for their latest drama, "Young Mothers.' It's their ninth prize in Cannes. The festival's award for best first film, the Camera d'Or, went to Hasan Hadi for "The President's Cake,' making it the first Iraqi film to win an award at the festival. Saturday's ceremony brought to a close the 78th Cannes Film Festival where geopolitics cast a long shadow, both on screen and off. Shortly before the French Riviera extravaganza, which is also the world's largest movie market, U.S. President Donald Trump floated the idea of a 100% tariff on movies made overseas. Most filmmakers responded with a shrug, calling the plan illogical. "Can you hold up the movie in customs? It doesn't ship that way,' said Wes Anderson, who premiered his latest, "The Phoenician Scheme' at the festival. At the opening ceremony, honorary Palme d'Or recipient Robert De Niro called Trump "America's philistine president.' Other top American films in Cannes included Spike Lee's "Highest 2 Lowest' (which pulled Lee away from his New York Knicks but not out of their blue and orange color), the Christopher McQuarrie-Tom Cruise actioner "Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning," and Ari Aster's "Eddington,' which found a divisive reaction. Panahi's win put him in rare company. He's now won Cannes' Palme d'Or, Venice's Golden Lion (for "The Circle'), and Berlin's Golden Bear (for "Taxi'). Only three other filmmakers have done that: Henri-Georges Clouzot, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Robert Altman. Addressing reporters after his win, Panahi spoke about filmmakers and artists always being able to find a way, "even in complicated situations.' "They must realize that no powers that be can halt such people in their tracks,' said Panahi. "You have this power.'
Mint
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Cannes awards Palme d'Or to Iranian revenge drama ‘It Was Just an Accident'
Cannes, May 25 (AP) Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for his revenge thriller 'It Was Just an Accident,' handing the festival's top prize to a director who had been banned from leaving Iran for more than 15 years. Cate Blanchett on Saturday presented the award to Panahi, who three years ago was imprisoned in Iran before going on a hunger strike. For a decade and a half, he has made films clandestinely in his native country, including one film ('This Is Not a Film') made in his living room, and another ('Taxi') set in a car. The crowd rose in a thunderous standing ovation for the filmmaker, who immediately threw up his arms and leaned back in his seat in disbelief before applauding his collaborators and the audience around him. On stage, Panahi was cheered by Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche, who in 2010 in Cannes held up Panahi's name to honour the director when he was under house arrest. Panahi said what mattered most was freedom in his country. 'Let us join forces,' said Panahi. 'No one should dare tell us what kind of clothes we should wear, what we should do or what we should not do. The cinema is a society. Nobody is entitled to tell what we should or refrain from doing.' The win for 'It Was Just an Accident' extended an unprecedented streak: The indie distributor Neon has now backed the last six Palme d'Or winners. The latest triumph for Neon, which acquired 'It Was Just an Accident' for North American distribution after its premiere in Cannes, follows its Palmes for 'Parasite', 'Titane', 'Triangle of Sadness', 'Anatomy of a Fall' and 'Anora'. All those films were Oscar contenders and two, 'Parasite' and 'Anora', won best picture. Last year, filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran to attend the premiere of his film in Cannes and resettle in Germany. Panahi, though, has said that unlike his friend Rasoulof, life in exile isn't for him. He planned to fly home to Tehran on Sunday. 'It Was Just an Accident' was inspired by Panahi's experience in prison. In the film, a group of former prisoners encounter the man who terrorised them in jail, and weigh whether or not to kill him. Panahi was jailed in Tehran's Evin Prison after going there to inquire about the then-jailed Rasoulof. Panahi was released in 2023 after going on a hunger strike. In 2009, he was banned from traveling out of Iran after attending the funeral of a student killed in the Green Movement protests. Through those years, Panahi continued to make films illegally in Iran, without a permit, and had his films smuggled to festivals on USB drives. His travel ban was lifted after his release in 2023. 'The film springs from a feeling of resistance, survival, which is absolutely necessary today,' Binoche told reporters after the ceremony. 'Art will always win. What is human will always win.' The Cannes closing ceremony followed a major power outage that struck southeastern France on Saturday in what police suspected was arson. Only a few hours before stars began streaming down the red carpet, power was restored in Cannes. 'A day without electricity,' sighed John C Reilly, who sang an English-language 'La Vie En Rose' at the ceremony. The festival's films, he said, supplied 'all the needed electricity.' The Grand Prix, or second prize, was awarded to Joachim Trier's Norwegian family drama 'Sentimental Value', his lauded follow-up to 'The Worst Person in the World'. Some had expected 'Sentimental Value' to win the Palme, but Trier — whose film reunites him with actor Renate Reinsve — still took a major prize. 'We live in a time of tremendous excess and saturation of images. Moving images are being thrown at us all the time,' said Trier. 'And I want to give homage to the Cannes Film Festival for being a place where the big cinematic image, which is the foundation of the moving image, the free image, the image that we take time to look at, the image where we can identify with each other in contemplation and empathy, to be cherished in this place in such a way is very important in this moment.' Kleber Mendonça Filho's Brazilian political thriller 'The Secret Agent' won two big awards: best director for Filho and best actor for Wagner Moura. Though Cannes juries are generally urged to spread awards around, the two for 'The Secret Agent' showed the jury's strong feelings for it. Asked about the two prizes, juror Jeremy Strong explained, simply, 'That was our wish.' The wins, which followed the international film Oscar victory for Walter Salles' 'I'm Still Here' in March, gave Brazil more to celebrate. On X, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the awards 'show that our country's cinema is second to none.' The jury prize was split between two films: Oliver Laxe's desert road trip 'Sirat" and Mascha Schilinski's German, generation-spanning drama 'Sound of Falling'. Best actress went to Nadia Melliti for 'The Little Sister', Hafsia Herzi's French coming-of-age drama. The Belgian brothers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, who are two-time Palme d'Or winners, won best screenplay for their latest drama, 'Young Mothers.' Its their ninth prize in Cannes. The festival's award for best first film, the Camera d'Or, went to Hasan Hadi for 'The President's Cake,' making it the first Iraqi film to win an award at the festival. (AP) RB
Indian Express
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Cannes awards Palme d'Or to Iranian revenge drama It Was Just an Accident
Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday for his revenge thriller It Was Just an Accident, handing the festival's top prize to a director who had been banned from leaving Iran for more than 15 years. Cate Blanchett presented the award to Panahi, who three years ago was imprisoned in Iran before going on a hunger strike. For a decade and a half, he has made films clandestinely in his native country, including one film (This Is Not a Film) made in his living room, and another (Taxi) set in a car. The crowd rose in a thunderous standing ovation for the filmmaker, who immediately threw up his arms and leaned back in his seat in disbelief before applauding his collaborators and the audience around him. On stage, Panahi was cheered by Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche, who in 2010 in Cannes held up Panahi's name to honor the director when he was under house arrest. On stage, Panahi said what mattered most was freedom in his country. 'Let us join forces,' said Panahi. 'No one should dare tell us what kind of clothes we should wear, what we should do or what we should not do. The cinema is a society. Nobody is entitled to tell what we should or refrain from doing.' Also Read | The Mastermind Cannes' review: Kelly Reichardt's film is about a sloppy robber who is haunted by others' perceptions of his failure The win for It Was Just an Accident extended an unprecedented streak: The indie distributor Neon has now backed the last six Palme d'Or winners. The latest triumph for Neon, which acquired It Was Just an Accident for North American distribution after its premiere in Cannes, follows its Palmes for Parasite, Titane, Triangle of Sadness, Anatomy of a Fall and Anora. Last year, filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran to attend the premiere of his film in Cannes and resettle in Germany. Panahi, though, has said that unlike his friend Rasoulof, life in exile isn't for him. He planned to fly home to Tehran on Sunday. It Was Just an Accident was inspired by Panahi's experience in prison. In the film, a group of former prisoners encounter the man who terrorized them in jail, and weigh whether or not to kill him. Panahi was jailed in Tehran's Evin Prison after going there to inquire about the then-jailed Rasoulof. Panahi was released in 2023 after going on a hunger strike. In 2009, he was banned from traveling out of Iran after attending the funeral of a student killed in the Green Movement protests. Through those years, Panahi continued to make films illegally in Iran, without a permit, and had his films smuggled to festivals on USB drives. His travel ban was lifted after his release in 2023. 'The film springs from a feeling of resistance, survival, which is absolutely necessary today,' Binoche told reporters after the ceremony. 'Art will always win. What is human will always win.' The Cannes closing ceremony followed a major power outage that struck southeastern France on Saturday in what police suspected was arson. Only a few hours before stars began streaming down the red carpet, power was restored in Cannes. 'A day without electricity,' sighed John C. Reilly, who sang an English-language 'La Vie En Rose' at the ceremony. The festival's films, he said, supplied 'all the needed electricity.' Other winners at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival The Grand Prix, or second prize, was awarded to Joachim Trier's Norwegian family drama Sentimental Value, his lauded follow-up to The Worst Person in the World. Some had expected Sentimental Value to win the Palme, but Trier — whose film reunites him with actor Renate Reinsve — still took a major prize. 'We live in a time of tremendous excess and saturation of images. Moving images are being thrown at us all the time,' said Trier. 'And I want to give homage to the Cannes Film Festival for being a place where the big cinematic image, which is the foundation of the moving image, the free image, the image that we take time to look at, the image where we can identify with each other in contemplation and empathy, to be cherished in this place in such a way is very important in this moment.' Kleber Mendonça Filho's Brazilian political thriller The Secret Agent won two big awards: best director for Filho and best actor for Wagner Moura. Though Cannes juries are generally urged to spread awards around, the two for The Secret Agent showed the jury's strong feelings for it. Asked about the two prizes, juror Jeremy Strong explained, simply, 'That was our wish.' The wins, which followed the international film Oscar victory for Walter Salles' I'm Still Here in March, gave Brazil more to celebrate. On X, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the awards 'show that our country's cinema is second to none.' The jury prize was split between two films: Óliver Laxe's desert road trip Sirât and Mascha Schilinski's German, generation-spanning drama Sound of Falling. Best actress went to Nadia Melliti for The Little Sister, Hafsia Herzi's French coming-of-age drama. The Belgian brothers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, who are two-time Palme d'Or winners, won best screenplay for their latest drama, Young Mothers. Its their ninth prize in Cannes. The festival's award for best first film, the Camera d'Or, went to Hasan Hadi for The President's Cake, making it the first Iraqi film to win an award at the festival. Also Read | Cannes 2025: Neeraj Ghaywan's Homebound is a timely, trenchant testament to our times What else shaped Cannes this year Saturday's ceremony brought to a close a 78th Cannes Film Festival where geopolitics cast a long shadow, both on screen and off. Shortly before the French Riviera extravaganza, which is also the world's largest movie market, U.S. President Donald Trump floated the idea of a 100% tariff on movies made overseas. Most filmmakers responded with a shrug, calling the plan illogical. 'Can you hold up the movie in customs? It doesn't ship that way,' said Wes Anderson, who premiered his latest, The Phoenician Scheme at the festival. At the opening ceremony, honorary Palme d'Or recipient Robert De Niro called Trump 'America's philistine president.' Other top American films in Cannes included Spike Lee's Highest 2 Lowest (which pulled Lee away from his New York Knicks but not out of their blue and orange color), the Christopher McQuarrie-Tom Cruise actioner Mission: Impossible — Final Reckoning, and Ari Aster's Eddington, which found a divisive reaction. Panahi's win put him in rare company. He's now won Cannes' Palme d'Or, Venice's Golden Lion (for The Circle) and Berlin's Golden Bear (for Taxi). Only three other filmmakers have done that: Henri-Georges Clouzot, Michelangelo Antonioni and Robert Altman. Addressing reporters after his win, Panahi spoke about filmmakers and artists always being able to find a way, 'even in complicated situations.' 'They must realize that no powers that be can halt such people in their tracks,' said Panahi. 'You have this power.'
Korea Herald
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Cannes awards Palme d'Or to Iranian revenge drama 'It Was Just an Accident'
Iranian dissident filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday for his revenge thriller 'It Was Just an Accident," handing the festival's top prize to a director who had been banned from leaving Iran for more than 15 years. Cate Blanchett presented the award to Panahi, who three years ago was imprisoned in Iran before going on a hunger strike. For a decade and a half, he has made films clandestinely in his native country, including one film ("This Is Not a Film") made in his living room, and another ("Taxi") set in a car. The crowd rose in a thunderous standing ovation for the filmmaker, who immediately threw up his arms and leaned back in his seat in disbelief before applauding his collaborators and the audience around him. On stage, Panahi was cheered by Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche, who in 2010 in Cannes held up Panahi's name to honor the director when he was under house arrest. On stage, Panahi said what mattered most was freedom in his country. 'Let us join forces,' said Panahi. 'No one should dare tell us what kind of clothes we should wear, what we should do or what we should not do. The cinema is a society. Nobody is entitled to tell what we should or refrain from doing.' The win for 'It Was Just an Accident' extended an unprecedented streak: The indie distributor Neon has now backed the last six Palme d'Or winners. The latest triumph for Neon, which acquired 'It Was Just an Accident' for North American distribution after its premiere in Cannes, follows its Palmes for 'Parasite,' 'Titane,' 'Triangle of Sadness,' 'Anatomy of a Fall' and 'Anora.' All those films were Oscar contenders and two, 'Parasite' and 'Anora,' won best picture. Last year, filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran to attend the premiere of his film in Cannes and resettle in Germany. Panahi, though, has said that unlike his friend Rasoulof, life in exile isn't for him. He planned to fly home to Tehran on Sunday. 'It Was Just an Accident' was inspired by Panahi's experience in prison. In the film, a group of former prisoners encounter the man who terrorized them in jail, and weigh whether or not to kill him. Panahi was jailed in Tehran's Evin Prison after going there to inquire about the then-jailed Rasoulof. Panahi was released in 2023 after going on a hunger strike. In 2009, he was banned from traveling out of Iran after attending the funeral of a student killed in the Green Movement protests. Through those years, Panahi continued to make films illegally in Iran, without a permit, and had his films smuggled to festivals on USB drives. His travel ban was lifted after his release in 2023. 'The film springs from a feeling of resistance, survival, which is absolutely necessary today,' Binoche told reporters after the ceremony. 'Art will always win. What is human will always win.' The Cannes closing ceremony followed a major power outage that struck southeastern France on Saturday in what police suspected was arson. Only a few hours before stars began streaming down the red carpet, power was restored in Cannes. 'A day without electricity," sighed John C. Reilly, who sang an English-language 'La Vie En Rose' at the ceremony. The festival's films, he said, supplied 'all the needed electricity." The Grand Prix, or second prize, was awarded to Joachim Trier's Norwegian family drama 'Sentimental Value,' his lauded follow-up to 'The Worst Person in the World.' Some had expected 'Sentimental Value' to win the Palme, but Trier — whose film reunites him with actor Renate Reinsve — still took a major prize. 'We live in a time of tremendous excess and saturation of images. Moving images are being thrown at us all the time," said Trier. "And I want to give homage to the Cannes Film Festival for being a place where the big cinematic image, which is the foundation of the moving image, the free image, the image that we take time to look at, the image where we can identify with each other in contemplation and empathy, to be cherished in this place in such a way is very important in this moment.' Kleber Mendonca Filho's Brazilian political thriller 'The Secret Agent" won two big awards: best director for Filho and best actor for Wagner Moura. Though Cannes juries are generally urged to spread awards around, the two for 'The Secret Agent' showed the jury's strong feelings for it. Asked about the two prizes, juror Jeremy Strong explained, simply, 'That was our wish.' The wins, which followed the international film Oscar victory for Walter Salles' 'I'm Still Here' in March, gave Brazil more to celebrate. On social platform X, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said the awards 'show that our country's cinema is second to none.' The jury prize was split between two films: Oliver Laxe's desert road trip "Sirat" and Mascha Schilinski's German, generation-spanning drama 'Sound of Falling.' Best actress went to Nadia Melliti for 'The Little Sister,' Hafsia Herzi's French coming-of-age drama. The Belgian brothers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne, who are two-time Palme d'Or winners, won best screenplay for their latest drama, 'Young Mothers.' It's their ninth prize in Cannes. The festival's award for best first film, the Camera d'Or, went to Hasan Hadi for 'The President's Cake,' making it the first Iraqi film to win an award at the festival. Saturday's ceremony brought to a close the 78th Cannes Film Festival where geopolitics cast a long shadow, both on screen and off. Shortly before the French Riviera extravaganza, which is also the world's largest movie market, US President Donald Trump floated the idea of a 100 percent tariff on movies made overseas. Most filmmakers responded with a shrug, calling the plan illogical. 'Can you hold up the movie in customs? It doesn't ship that way,' said Wes Anderson, who premiered his latest, 'The Phoenician Scheme' at the festival. At the opening ceremony, honorary Palme d'Or recipient Robert De Niro called Trump 'America's philistine president.' Other top American films in Cannes included Spike Lee's 'Highest 2 Lowest' (which pulled Lee away from his New York Knicks but not out of their blue and orange color), the Christopher McQuarrie-Tom Cruise actioner 'Mission: Impossible — Final Reckoning," and Ari Aster's 'Eddington,' which found a divisive reaction. Panahi's win put him in rare company. He's now won Cannes' Palme d'Or, Venice's Golden Lion (for 'The Circle') and Berlin's Golden Bear (for 'Taxi'). Only three other filmmakers have done that: Henri-Georges Clouzot, Michelangelo Antonioni and Robert Altman. Addressing reporters after his win, Panahi spoke about filmmakers and artists always being able to find a way, 'even in complicated situations.' 'They must realize that no powers that be can halt such people in their tracks,' said Panahi. 'You have this power.'
