Artists Using Secondhand Clothing to Promote Anti-Consumerism in Iran

By

 IFP Editorial Staff

Two Iranian actresses have joined a campaign against consumerism by altering their old clothes, calling on other artists and their followers to get on board as well.

Hana Kamkar and Azita Torkashvand made alterations to their old clothes and attended the Hafez Awards to promote the campaign as a social and cultural move.

The campaign draws attention to the fact that many environmental resources go to waste every year as they are used to produce clothes that are worn just once or twice. Accordingly, the campaign invites artists along with the general public to join this social-cultural move and say “No” to consumerism.

Neda Sormeh is the person who re-designed the clothes of these two actresses.

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“Based on the promise that I gave in the 2018 Fashion and Clothes Festival, I launched a campaign to remind people of, and reconstruct this lovely science, which has existed in our culture since long ago,” said Sormeh.

“For this year’s Hafez festival, I invited Azita Torkashvand and Hana Kamkar to join us as the first people to get on board, and to wear outfits which they no longer used and which were redesigned by our team,” she added.

The “Fashion or Consumerism” campaign is now up and running. Artists have been invited to join the campaign to help protect the environment and do away with consumerism.

Similar campaigns have already been launched around the world. High-profile figures such as Michelle Obama (former US President Barack Obama’s wife) and Kate Middleton (the British crown prince’s wife) have, in symbolic moves, put on their old clothes in red-carpet ceremonies and international events such as the Oscars and the Cannes Film Festival to express their protest at consumerism.

World Wood Day Event Praises Iranian Artist’s Work

The World Wood Day event recently held in Austria rewarded a magnificent work of art by Alireza Bavandpour, a prominent wood artist from Kermanshah in Western Iran.

According to Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Department of Kermanshah, the wood work created by Bavandpour was selected as the best work of the event, which is held in one country each year.

Parvaneh Heidari the Deputy Chief of this department said these competitions were hosted by Austria this year, and were attended by 100 outstanding artists from 100 countries in the city of Graz.

She also added that Alireza Bavandpour, the most prominent wood artist in Kermanshah, was the only representative of Iran at this event.

“The work that Iran’s representative offered in these competitions was highly appreciated by the judges, and managed to win the top 2019 title.”

“One of the items of the festival was building a wooden work of the most important tourist attractions in the countries of the contestants. The representative of Iran presented the wood carving of Kermanshah’s Taq-e Bostan, and donated it to the Museum of Beethoven, which keeps the artworks.”

The 2019 World Wood Day event in Austria was jointly organized by the World Wood Day Foundation and the International Wood Culture Society to explore the theme Change. World Wood Day (March 21st) observed its seventh celebration and participants from different countries and regions of the world took part in the event from March 20 to 24 at the Austrian Open Air Stubing, City of Graz.

New Iranian Directors Make Unusual Films: American Critic

By

 IFP 

American film critic Deborah Young says the new generation of Iranian filmmakers are more adventurous than the previous ones, and make more unusual films.

Young, a senior film critic at Hollywood Reporter, has long been acquainted with the Iranian cinema and watches Iranian films at various international festivals.

This year, she is among the special guests at the 37th International Fajr Film Festival, which is underway in Tehran.

What follows is a brief interview with Young:

Q: You have always been a supporter of the Iranian cinema. You watch Iranian films at various festivals. What do you think of the Iranian films you watched last year?

A: I think it was a great year. Young filmmakers from the new generation have emerged that I have not been acquainted with before. Your cinema is in a state of transformation. I think great filmmakers like Abbas Kiarostami have opened the way for young people, young filmmakers and new topics. Filmmakers do not repeat the same themes in their films. New young directors make films that are unusual and unconventional, and their works are a bit complicated. But I think they have more modern and up-to-date feelings and expressions.

Q: After Abbas Kiarostami’s death, how do you evaluate the Iranian cinema in recent years? Do you think the Iranian cinema has entered a new phase?

A: The Iranian cinema in its current state is attractive. There is no clear gap between the present and the past few years. In general, film industry has strong roots in Iran. In the new generation of Iranian cinema there is something that I have not seen in other countries.

Q: Who is your favourite actor from the new generation?

A: Navid Mohammadzadeh.

Q: There are a lot of anti-Trump comments in Hollywood, and Trump has many opponents. What do you think?

A: I can say that 90% of Hollywood is anti-Trump. I do not know why. I mean, the cinema is clearly an art form, and it brings all the artistic forms of people with different points of view together. There are people who have an independent outlook and are not looking for money. So there is no connection between these people and Trump.

Fajr Festival Great Chance to Watch Oriental Films: Italian Director

Italian director, screenwriter and actor Italo Spinelli believes that the focus of cinema is moving from the West to the East, and Iran’s Fajr International Film Festival is the best place to watch Oriental movies.

Spinelli believes that the festival is dedicated to Asian films and serves as a link between the cinema of Italy and the cinema of Asia.

Here is an interview conducted with the renowned Italian filmmaker:

Q: Have you participated in Fajr Festival before?

A: Yes. I have come here many times since 2000. I come to Iran for Fajr and Verite festivals. Fajr is a great and interesting festival that gives me the opportunity to watch and pick Iranian films.

Q: You must have seen a lot of Iranian films. What is your opinion about the Iranian cinema?

A: I think your cinema is one of the best ones in the world. It has a long history and high quality. There are good directors here.

I can make a huge list of my favourite Iranian directors, especially the contemporary ones. There are many great names such as Asghar Farhadi, Abbas Kiarostami and the young director Reza Dormishian. Iranian director’s films are very wonderful and they are very talented. It’s difficult to name them all.

The 37th Fajr International Film Festival was opened in the Iranian capital Tehran on Wednesday, April 17. A showcase for audiences for more than three decades, the Festival is hosting over 250 international guests from 58 countries.

163 features and shorts from 64 countries are screened at this year’s festival. 60 students from Iran and abroad also attend this year’s workshops called Talent Campus.

Presided over by award-winning writer and director Seyyed Reza Mirkarimi, the 37th Fajr International Film Festival runs until April 26.

The Old Road; A Thrilling Drama on Violence against Women

By

 Mahdi Arman

Iranian actresses Mahtab Keramani (left) and Tarlan Parvaneh (right) along with Manijeh Hekmat, the director of the film "The Old Road" (2018)

Manijeh Hekmat, a prominent Iranian filmmaker, in her latest work “The Old Road,” has addressed the social problem of violence against women, at a time when the issue has turned into a matter of discussion for thinkers around the world.

Hekmat, who has won numerous awards in Iran and other countries, has made her latest feature film about fighting violence against women, which is her main social concern.

“The Old Road” is Hekmat’s fourth feature film after being a decade away from filmmaking. In recent years, she has been working as a producer and distributor, but last year she participated in the Fajr Film Festival with “The Old Road” as the latest film as a director.

Iranian actress Mahtab Keramati, who has been a UNICEF National Ambassador in Iran since 2006, plays the main role of the film as a victim of violence. Karamati, who has a history of engagement in humanitarian activities, education of children, and awareness raising about AIDS, is the smart choice of Hekmat to play the role of a victim of violence against women in this film. The Old Road, featuring Keramati and Atila Pesyani, has been screened as of September 30 in Iranian cinemas.

In her previous works, Hekmat addressed the social problems of women in the community and family. For example, her “Women’s Prison” in 2000 won many awards.

Violence against women is one of the most important social problems and a clear instance of human rights violation. Many victims of such violence do not want to disclose it for a variety of reasons. Showing examples of such violence and making the society aware of them can be the first step to contain the social ill. Meanwhile, the media can play an effective role in informing the public.

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Mahdi Arman

Mahdi Arman is an Iranian journalist who works as the head of the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website's Business Department. He also has a special interest in the latest social and cultural developments in Iran and the world.