CFE Film Series: This is Not a Film

Synopsis: 

This clandestine documentary, shot partially on an iPhone and smuggled into France in a cake for a last-minute submission to Cannes, depicts the day-to-day life of acclaimed director Jafar Panahi during his house arrest in his Tehran apartment. While appealing his sentence - six years in prison and a 20-year ban from filmmaking - Panahi is seen talking to his family and lawyer on the phone, discussing his plight with Mirtahmasb and reflecting on the meaning of the art of filmmaking.

Ignore the title This Is Not a Film - this is a great film, and a triumph of creativity and courage over repression.
                        -- Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly

“It is 75 minutes of powerful and touching insight into the helplessness of being a citizen in a country that respects none of the citizenly rights and virtues: those that relate to art, human dignity and freedom of speech, movement and ideas.”
                        -- Nigel Andrews, Financial Times

“There are fireworks -- and an ending that's as dramatic as anything made by any director making a film.”
                        -- John Anderson, Newsday

Introduction by Gerda Cammaer, Associate Professor, School of Image Arts, Ryerson University and Kaveh Partovi, Graduate Student, MFA Documentary Media, School of Image Arts at Ryerson University.

Co-sponsored with the Documentary Media Research Centre at Ryerson University

Please contact cfe@ryerson.ca if you require accommodation to ensure inclusion in this event.

This event is free and no registration is required.