The International Coalition for Filmmakers and at Risk (ICFR) and leading Iranian director Jafar Panahi have demanded the release of Iranian set and costume designer Leila Naghdipari.
Naghdipari was one of hundreds of Iranians detained earlier this month amid street protests in the country marking the anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death in police custody.
Her credits include Panahi’s Cannes competition film 3 Faces and Abbas Amini’s Valderrama.
The IFCR and its founding institutions, the International Film Festival Rotterdam, International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam and European Film Academy, issued a statement today ”to protest vehemently against the arrest of Iranian set and costume designer Leila Naghdipari and demand her immediate and unconditional release.”
Also signing the IFCR statement were the Berlin International Film Festival, the Catalan Film Academy, German Film Academy, Luxembourg Film Academy, Portuguese Film Academy and the Ukrainian Film Academy.
The statement quoted Panahi, an ICFR ambassador who has himself repeatedly been arrested by the Iranian authorities, saying that Leila Naghdipari “was arrested on the anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death. All the efforts of her husband Majid Barzegar, filmmaker and producer, as well as other personalities from Iranian cinema, have been to no avail. Leila has asthma and an autoimmune disease that requires her to take medication every day, which she has not been allowed to receive for a week. I’m worried about Leila and I’m worried about Iranian cinema.”
In its statement, the IFCR said: “We stand with Jafar and all those in Iran who stand up for their basic human rights and the freedom of expression and call on the Iranian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Leila Naghdipari and her colleagues. We encourage all film and culture institutions around the world to do the same. We are also aware of other cases, including that of actress Masoumeh Ghasemipour, and are as concerned about them, keeping a close eye on them, and will keep on publishing information as soon as confirmed.”
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