Jafar Panahi is a renowned Iranian filmmaker celebrated for his poignant portrayals of Iranian society. Born in 1960 in Mīāneh, Iran, he gained international acclaim with his debut feature, The White Balloon (1995), which won the Caméra d’Or at Cannes. A prominent figure in the Iranian New Wave, Panahi’s works often focus on the lives of women, children, and marginalized individuals, highlighting themes of oppression and resilience. Despite facing censorship and a 20-year filmmaking ban imposed in 2010, Panahi continued to create impactful films under restrictive conditions. His notable works include Taxi Tehran (2015), which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and This Is Not a Film (2011), smuggled out of Iran on a flash drive hidden inside a cake. In 2025, Panahi returned to the Cannes Film Festival with A Simple Accident, a dark comedy exploring political vengeance and state repression, marking his first appearance at the festival in over two decades
(58)
