Film Festival
Refugee director Mohammed Rassulof in Cannes
Mohammed Rassulof presents his film “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” in Cannes with his daughter Baran Rassulof. photo
© Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP/dpa
Only a few days ago he fled Iran – now he came to Cannes for the premiere of his new film: Mohammed Rassulof is showing “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” at the film festival.
A few days ago he secretly fled his homeland, now he was celebrated in Cannes: The Iranian director Mohammed Rassulof presented his new work “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” at the film festival.
The film tells the story of the impact of political protests in Iran on a family. When Rassulof arrived at the cinema and after the film, the director and the rest of the film crew were given a standing ovation that lasted for minutes on Friday evening.
Not everyone involved could attend the premiere
The filmmaker was accompanied by his daughter Baran. He repeatedly held up two photos on the red carpet and in the cinema: The photos showed actress Soheila Golestani and actor Missagh Sareh, who play important roles in the film but were unable to travel to the premiere.
Rassulof was recently sentenced to several years in prison in Iran and left the country without permission a few days ago. The French newspaper “Le Monde” writes, citing an interview with Rassulof, that he fled to Germany, where his daughter is studying medicine.
Rassulof told Screen International magazine that he was in the middle of undercover filming of “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” when he heard about the verdict. He appealed and was able to finish the film during that time. After filming was over, the appeals court confirmed the sentence.
Two hours until the arrest
“That’s when I knew I would have very little time before they would actually come and arrest me,” Rassulof said. “So I had two hours to decide whether I would stay and possibly go to jail or escape, and that’s what I did. In those two hours, I decided to leave all my electronic devices at home and get taken to a safe place before crossing the border and leaving the country.”
Rassulof, who received the Berlinale’s Golden Bear in 2020 for his film “There Is No Evil”, is considered an extremely critical filmmaker in the country and has already been imprisoned in the past. A little over a year ago, he was again banned from leaving the country.
Film about the protests in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” tells of the protests in Iran following the death of the young Kurdish woman Jina Mahsa Amini in September 2022. The situation in the country is told through the tensions in a family. On the one hand there is the devout father named Iman (Sareh), who recently started working as an investigator at the Islamic Revolutionary Court, and his wife Najmeh (Golestani). On the other hand there are their two teenage daughters who sympathize with the protests.
After his promotion, Iman is forced to recommend death sentences in his reports before he has even investigated individual cases. He has concerns, becomes increasingly paranoid and is afraid of losing his job again. He is given a gun, which he stores at home – until one day it disappears. Iman suspects his daughters of having stolen the gun, and the situation escalates.
Applause for a suspenseful film
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is not only a politically extremely relevant film, but also a suspenseful one with complex characters. It was estimated that it was the film in competition that received the longest applause. What was also unusual was that there were applause at several moments during the film – always when his daughters defend themselves against Iman.
Amini was arrested by the vice squad in 2022 because her headscarf had slipped slightly. Shortly afterwards, she died in police custody. After her death, the 22-year-old became an icon of a nationwide movement – whose slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom” was also written on a piece of paper by a visitor in the cinema on Friday evening. When her picture was shown, the audience cheered.
After more than 12 minutes of thunderous applause, Rassulof was given a microphone and thanked the audience. “I am very happy to be here,” he said – while also remembering those who could not leave Iran for the premiere.