Reactions to Claims of Judicial Involvement in the Selection of Films for the Fajr Festival

While an official from Iran's judiciary announced the entry of this branch into the 'Technical Review Working Group' for the Fajr Film Festival, the festival's secretary emphasized that only the selection committee reviews the films. According to reports from Fars and ISNA news agencies, the secretary of the Public Awareness Promotion Council of the Social Affairs Department of the Judiciary stated on Saturday, December 23, in a press conference: 'In the Fajr Film Festival, we reviewed the films as a technical working group.' He added: 'This year, our involvement has become more serious, and we even played a role in selecting the films that will be chosen for the festival.' Hours after these remarks, Ebrahim Darvighzadeh, the secretary of the 36th Fajr Film Festival, announced in an interview with Mehr News Agency that only the festival's selection committee reviews and selects the films. Simultaneously, Mehdi Qorbanpour, the manager of the 'Manifestation of National Will' section at the Fajr Festival, stated that the selection committee was chosen by the festival's secretary some time ago and is currently selecting the films. He added: 'The judiciary can only judge among the 22 works selected by the Fajr Film Festival's selection committee and award a prize to the film that has caught their attention.' Mr. Qorbanpour expressed happiness about the judiciary's decision to participate in the 'Manifestation of National Will' section of the Fajr Festival, while also announcing that this branch has not yet filled out a form regarding its participation in this section. This year, the Fajr Film Festival includes a section called 'Manifestation of National Will,' where governmental and private organizations can review works accepted in the festival's competition section and award prizes to films they select. The Fajr Film Festival has announced that it will review and announce how governmental and private organizations can participate in this section after requests from these organizations. The publication of conflicting reports about the judiciary's role in the Fajr Film Festival comes at a time when the interference of non-governmental entities in film screenings has previously made headlines. For instance, after the Student Basij of Imam Sadiq University protested the screening of the film 'I Am Not Angry,' the Film Guild Council announced that the screening of this film has been postponed to an unspecified time. This council had previously announced that the film 'I Am Not Angry' would be screened in Iranian cinemas starting Wednesday, December 20. In this context, Alireza Rahimi, a representative from Tehran, deemed the pressures to halt the screening of this film as a sign of 'soft power display by pressure groups' to somehow announce, 'I am alive.' He criticized the halt of the film's screening, stating that if the Minister of Culture 'cannot provide a safe and calm environment in the cultural and cinematic sector, it would be better for him to announce it himself before the parliament takes action, so that the President does not fall behind on his promises in the cultural sector.' Mr. Rahimi emphasized that decision-makers in the cinematic field must 'have the courage to stand against waves in favor of society and not diminish the hopes of the people and the cinematic community with their indecision.' The film 'I Am Not Angry' has faced challenges in obtaining a screening permit since its production. This film, directed by Reza Dormishian and starring Navid Mohammadzadeh and Baran Kosari, tells the story of a star student who has been expelled from university and is seeking a suitable job to convince the father of his beloved girl to agree to their marriage.