Jafar Panahi, whose work has earned top honors at major international film festivals—including the Palme d’Or at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and the Asian Filmmaker of the Year award at the 30th Busan International Film Festival—has been sentenced to one year in prison and barred from leaving Iran for two years.
According to The Guardian and Variety, the sentence was handed down on Monday following a trial in absentia over alleged propaganda activities. Panahi’s attorney, Mostafa Nili, confirmed that the director plans to appeal. Specific details about the alleged propaganda have not been disclosed. Panahi is currently living in France and attending international events.
Earlier this year, Panahi won the Palme d’Or at Cannes for his Iranian-French co-production thriller No Bears (Just an Accident), becoming only the fourth director in history to win the so-called Grand Slam of top film awards, which also includes the Golden Lion and Golden Bear. No Bears, which holds a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, follows a former political prisoner who becomes suspicious of a stranger at his auto repair shop, blending tense suspense with social commentary.
Panahi is known for confronting censorship and political oppression in Iran, often using his films to explore social issues and the personal risks of filmmaking under authoritarian rule. Over the years, he has faced repeated legal restrictions. In 2010, he was sentenced to six years in prison and banned from making films or traveling for 20 years, though the sentence was later reduced to house arrest.
In 2022, Iranian authorities re-arrested Panahi, threatening to enforce his previous sentence. In 2023, he staged a hunger strike to demand his release and was eventually freed on bail. While filming No Bears, Panahi reportedly worked under constant government surveillance, and authorities nearly confiscated all footage because the production did not have official approval.
As Panahi continues to face political pressure and censorship, the international film community is closely monitoring the situation, underscoring ongoing concerns about artistic freedom and human rights in Iran.
