AFP: Iran will punish actors and directors who make unauthorised films, an official said in a report on Sunday after several such movies won international awards. TEHRAN (AFP) — Iran will punish actors and directors who make unauthorised films, an official said in a report on Sunday after several such movies won international awards.
"I announce that we will take action against artists who collaborate in producing unlicenced films," Alireza Sajadpour, who heads the culture ministry's vetting office, was quoted as saying in the daily Tehran Times.
"This office will punish them," he warned cast and crew members working on such projects.
All productions and publications are subject to vetting before being released in Iran, but filmmakers and scriptwriters have faced tougher censorship than usual under hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Directors are expected to submit screenplays to the office before shooting, but several filmmakers have ignored this and not bothered with an official permit which is needed for future public screenings.
Critically-acclaimed director Bahman Ghobadi's latest film "Nobody Knows about Persian Cats" was made without a permit after being rejected several times.
The film, which is about Iran's underground independent music scene, won a jury award in Cannes this year. Ghobadi is currently living in Europe.
