Jafar Panahi is banned from making films in his native Iran, but that hasn’t stopped him winning the Golden Bear at the Berlin film festival.
The moment a banned director was announced as the winner of one of the film world’s most prestigious awards
‘Taxi’ is about a taxi driver who chauffeurs an odd assortment of people around the Iranian capital of Tehran.
The film is shot from inside a taxi and takes an apparently whimsical look at life and filmmaking in Iran.
The director was praised by one of the Silver Bear winners after the awards were handed out.
“There’s a sharpness in cinema, there’s a danger there that I think I like and I respect Panahi for that because he’s able to tell us how dangerous his work can be in a good way, danger in a good way – danger because he’s probably showing things that other people don’t want to see.”
And the winner of the Silver Bear for directing also had some good words for Panahi.
“You know I’m very very happy because I admire very much the films of Jafar Panahi and I’m really overwhelmed by the fact that he continues to make films considering the situation he’s in. I signed all the petitions I could sign for him years ago. It’s one of the good things I’ve done in life, I think and I’m really happier than if it had been for me, the award that was for Panahi.”
Other films by Panahi have been shown at Berlin since 2010 when he was banned from making films for 20 years.
It’s not clear how ‘Taxi’ was smuggled out of Iran, but it’s done enough to be the toast of this year’s festival
(Ventuno/ANI)