DUBAI: Iran has barred filmmaker Reza Dormishian from leaving the country.
Dormishian was due to travel to the International Film Festival of India in Goa, where his film “A Minor” was scheduled to play.
On his arrival at the airport, his passport was confiscated. It is unclear if he was arrested and, if so, what the charges will be.
However, it is understood that the authorities’ action is the result of his recent social media posts about the Iranian government.
“Throughout the nationwide protests in Iran, Dormishian shared various posts on his Instagram account to show support for the significant developments,” sources close to him said, according to media reports.
In his most recent post, Dormishian had said: “I would die for a hair strand of Iranian people.
“I would die for the youth who are gone with the wind, from Balochistan to Kurdistan.
“What is my curfew worth?”
Dormishian is only the latest in a long line of filmmakers to face Iran’s arbitrary detention policies.
In July, acclaimed director Jafar Panahi was ordered to serve a six-year jail sentence, handed down a decade ago, after he attempted to find information about fellow filmmakers Mohammad Rasoulof and Mostafa Aleahmad, who had been detained earlier.
Last month, Iranian filmmaker Mani Haghighi was prevented from leaving Iran to attend the BFI London Film Festival, where his latest film “Subtraction” was being screened.
And earlier this month, co-directors Farnaz and Mohammadreza Jurabchian were barred from traveling to the Netherlands for the International Documentary Film Festival where their film “Silent House” had its world premiere.
Directed by Dariush Mehrjui and produced by Dormishian, “A Minor” played in India on Thursday and Friday last week.
