Mohammad Rasoulof, whose latest film There Is No Evil won the Golden Bear at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival, has been summoned to serve a one-year prison sentence in his native Iran, his lawyer has told The Associated Press.
He was arrested and sentenced last summer by the Iranian Revolutionary Court after he was accused of “endangering national security” and “propaganda against the Islamic government”.
The sentence wasn’t carried out last year, although he was slapped with a two-year travel ban by the Iranian regime that prevented him from attending the Berlinale.
According to reports he plans to appeal. Iran’s prison is under severe strain due to the coronavirus outbreak, with the regime set to temporarily release 54,000 prisoners.
The Golden Bear for There Is No Evil was collected on Rasoulof’s behalf on Saturday by the film’s producers Farzad Pak and Kaveh Farnam and his daughter Baran Rasoulof.
There Is No Evil, a cautionary tale about the death penalty, was shot in secret by the director in his native Iran. Films Boutique is handling sales.
More to follow.
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