Top honour at S'pore International Film Festival for Jafar Panahi
Celebrated Iranian film-maker Jafar Panahi will receive the Cinema Honorary Award at the 35th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), which runs from Nov 28 to Dec 8.
This marks the 64-year-old’s first in-person attendance at SGIFF since the lifting of his 14-year travel ban. In April 2023, news reports said he travelled out of Iran, possibly to France, for the first time since the lifting of his ban.
Panahi last attended SGIFF in 1998 to present his film The Mirror (1997).
The Cinema Honorary Award, SGIFF’s highest accolade, recognises Panahi’s contributions to Asian cinema, according to a statement released by festival organisers on Oct 3.
He has gained international acclaim for his films that offer critiques of Iranian society. Despite facing censorship, arrests and a ban on film-making in his home country, he has continued to create works that have won awards at film festivals worldwide.
His debut feature, The White Balloon (1995), won the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and The Circle (2000) won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Taxi (2015), made while he was banned from film-making, won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The Cinema Honorary Award, introduced in 2014, previously recognised visionary film-makers such as Hong Kong’s Fruit Chan, Indonesia’s Garin Nugroho, Cambodia’s Rithy Panh and Japan’s Takashi Miike.
At SGIFF, Panahi will participate in a dialogue session. The festival will also showcase The Circle along with screenings of his earlier works, including Crimson Gold (2003) and This Is Not A Film (2011).
The festival will open on Nov 28 with Stranger Eyes, a psychological thriller by Singaporean film-maker Yeo Siew Hua that was the first entry from the Republic to premiere in the main competition at the Venice Film Festival. Stranger Eyes explores themes of surveillance and societal anxieties through the story of a couple grappling with their child’s disappearance.
Another Singaporean film-maker, Eric Khoo, will see his latest work Spirit World open the festival’s Horizon section.
The supernatural drama, starring French actress Catherine Deneuve with Japanese actors Yutaka Takenouchi and Masaaki Sakai, will close the Busan International Film Festival, which ends Oct 11. The film follows a legendary singer’s journey into a supernatural realm during her final concert in Tokyo.
The 35th edition of SGIFF will feature over 30 Singaporean and made-with-Singapore features and short films. Mediacorp actress Rebecca Lim has been named the festival’s first ambassador, while a revamped Audience Choice Award will now be open only to Singapore and made-with-Singapore productions.
The SGIFF’s full programme line-up as well as ticketing information will be available from Oct 28.
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