The forced closure of the Iranian House of Cinema, as predicted, has drawn a line in the sand between those in Iran who are for visual expression and those who are not.

The House of Cinema, an organization over 20 years old which stood as the tallest pillar of support for independent film in Iran, represented much more than the embracing of independent film. To filmmakers everywhere in Iran it was a symbol of their art and a home for their passion. Asghar Farhadi, director of the critically acclaimed A Separation, had this to say in reference to the closing of the House and the possible Ministry summation of the opinions of a majority of filmmakers:

“If the decision to dissolve the House of Cinema is based on the idea that the majority of the film community and members of the guild are in agreement with your method, then I suggest that you take a vote on this decision among the few thousand members of the House of Cinema.”

Whatsoever is the outcome of this legislation, the outstanding support against the closure can at least ensure that there will be a support system for Iranian filmmakers who wish to continue pursuing making films. Farhadi’s success is not uncommon: the talent teeming from Iran is bountiful and we can only hope that indie filmmakers of the country can find a new and even more substantial pillar to stand tall for them.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 17th, 2012 at 6:29 pm and is filed under Film Business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.