EXCLUSIVE: Asghar Farhadi has confirmed he is writing his next feature and that it will be a return to his native Farsi language.
He said he expects to complete the script in the next year. While plot details remain under wraps and shooting locations are being explored, he said it will not be shot in either Iran or France.
His most recent film was the French-language Parallel Tales, which played in competition at Cannes and is now screening at Sarajevo. It was shot in France, where Farhadi lived for two years, and stars Isabelle Huppert, Virginie Efira and Vincent Cassel.
Farhadi returned to live in Iran full-time earlier this year but said he does not want to shoot in Iran under the current political and social oppression.
The two-time Oscar-winning director of The Salesman and A Separation was speaking to Screen at the Sarajevo Film Festival, where he is receiving an honorary award and a retrospective of his work is screening.
Farhadi has also ruled out filming his next project in the US. “For Parallel Tales, I was living in the US for three years researching and writing. My producer was American. I moved to the US for three years writing, even casting and scouting.
“After three years, I felt I couldn’t connect with the environment. I changed my mind and moved to France.”
However, he is exploring options for an English-language feature and said the UK is a strong possibility for the production, and that he would prefer to base himself in Europe after good experiences in France, Spain and Germany.
“I haven’t picked a project, but if I decide to make a film in the English language, I would prefer to do it in the UK, based on the experience I had in the US. It was not a bad experience, but when I moved to the US to research, the kind of story I love is a little far from that culture.”
Parallel Tales has not been formally released in Iran, but a pirated version has screened widely online. “When they publish the film outside [Iran], in France on the internet, Iranian people right away can watch it with Farsi subtitles. But Iranian cinemas don’t publish foreign films too much, just a few small screenings. So for this film, there is no space for it.”
He admitted it is difficult to have his film classified as ‘foreign’ in his home country. “It’s a very paradoxical feeling. My wish is working in my language, my culture.”
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