by frog
If you’re in Wellington this Sunday night, there’s a free film showing at the Paramount in support of Jafar Panahi.
The Iranian filmmaker was arrested in March 2010 for “plans” to make a film about the nationwide protests that followed the disputed 2009 presidential election in Iran.
To the dismay of all who know his humane and compassionate films – many of which deal with the status of women under the regime – Panahi was sentenced in December to six years jail and banned from shooting movies or writing scripts for 20 years. (Here’s his statement in defense)
Artists, politicians and human rights activists around the world are backing Amnesty International’s appeal to revoke the silencing of Panahi.
Sunday’s free screening of Panahi’s film Offside at Wellington’s Paramount Theatre, is part of this international campaign.
Offside deals with the attempt by a disparate group of women soccer fans to see the national team play its World Cup qualifier – and, amazingly, the film was shot at the actual game.
Speakers at the screening will be NZ Film Festival chief Bill Gosden, Juliet Elworthy of Amnesty International and NZ/Iranian film director Faramarz Beheshti.
Admission is free but koha is requested to cover theatre rental costs.
Politics, sport and film all rolled into one….just say ‘yes’ Wellington!
Published in Justice & Democracy | Society & Culture by frog on Thu, January 27th, 2011
Tags: Amnesty International, jafar panahi, new zealand green party, offside
on the trolls and those who are unable to keep on topic
It makes you appreciate our democracy here in NZ. To deny artists the opportunity to make films and write for 20 years is extremely cruel and undemocratic. If I couldn’t write anything I would go mad.
peter
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What Democracy?
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Or should I say dysmocracy?
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Democracy is doing what the goverment don’t ban, but some of the things they ban are very ridiculous, cruel, illogical….
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Democracy= rule by the people. Not rule by 120, mostly, self appointed incompetents and criminals. That is normally called an Oligarchy or Dictatorship. Even if we are allowed the huge privilege of rearranging the chairs every three years.
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Go and live in dictatorships to get some idea how bad NZ is. The Gnats must go all the same.
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Agrees with Thomas;
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Give ‘im a seat in the NZ Parliament eh?….eh?
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I fully support Panahi I just couldn’t live in a place like Iran; how horrible it is to express your views in whispers behind closed doors.
I have been following the protests in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemman and interestingly they are mostly secular, no religious groups were on the streets and the core issue in those demo’s is basic human rights and democratic rights.
Was it possible that some of those demonstrators viewed ‘Offside’ on Utube or other sites and twitted their reaction to it?
In the west the corporate dictators (and their political lackeys & compradores) are more cunning they will seek to undermine democracy by infiltrating two seemingly opposing parties that will serve their interests. Thus a dysmocracy.
The end result will be similar sort of dictatorship as Iran with just a veneer of democracy.
We really should not let this happen and I ask you Has Mubarak or Turkey (except Israeli raid on the supply ship to Gaza) really opposed Israels excesses?
Has the western dysmocracies put sanctions on countries like Tunisia or Yemman for not being democratic?
Yet it is very strange that a totalitarian state like Cuba has been singled out and sanctioned by the US since the fall of Batista!!!!!!
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“It makes you appreciate our democracy here in NZ.”
To some extent – though, our freedoms are increasingly curtailed, and our freedom of speech seems to be tolerated by those in authority only to the the extent that those with power to alter public opinion agree not to do so (When I read the heavily-censored Iranian media while travelling through the country I was struck by the fact that the content appeared little different to the ‘free’ New Zealand media).
There’s little need to ban people here from speaking out as the government can rest assured that any dissent will be met with relentless volleys of ridicule, abuse and misrepresentation from the media.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a New Zealand film as fiercely critical of our establishment’s misdeeds as Panahi’s The Circle (I haven’t seen Offside), after leaving the cinema I found myself nervously looking over my shoulder and trying to be inconspicuous. Much respect and good wishes to the guy.
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…and Offside was helluva good – funny, fascinating and unexpectedly uplifting.
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