Iranian filmmaker withdraws from Indian festival jury

TEHRAN,Nov. 30(MNA) -- The Iranian filmmaker Tahmineh Milani has withdrawn from the jury of the 42nd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) after the organizers appointed Israeli director Dan Wolman to the jury. “Any committed individual disapproves of Israel’s oppression of Palestinians and there is no doubt over my sympathy for the people of Palestine,” Milani had explained in her letter. Milani was among the five-member jury of the ongoing festival in Goa, but her recent interview with the Times of India offended some in Iran, forcing Milani to resign and return home. “We are not politicians, and we find no problem in working together. Cinema is not bound by political boundaries; its appeal is universal,” Milani stated to the Times of India when asked about the experiences of working together with a filmmaker from Israel on the sidelines of the festival. However, in her letter, Milani gave details about the recent events. “When I received the list of the jury members, I accepted the invitation. Names of Lee Yong Kwan from Korea and Danish filmmaker Susanne Bier encouraged me the most to attend the program to become more closely familiar with the opinions of these famous filmmakers,” she said. “But unfortunately Bier became sick and the organizers replaced her with another jury member during the final days,” she added. “Dan Wolman is a retired filmmaker independent from the Zionists’ regime, and I did not think of complaining even for a second over his appearance at the festival because of the country in which he was born,” she added. Milani continued in her letter, “None of the jury members attending the international festivals are representatives of their country. They are not like sportsmen who act like a representative of their country. The filmmakers are independent and are invited for their artistic credits and experience. “I still cannot believe why my presence as the jury member beside the independent filmmaker who himself disapproves of his country’s politics, had provoked such widespread criticism by some in Iran,” concludes the letter. Headed by the renowned Malayalam filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan, the festival, which began on November 23, will be running until December 3.