The first video-music festival in Iran, dubbed ‘Qoqnoos’ (phoenix) held last week saw several pop stars at the closing ceremony.
The event compered by actor Amin Zendegani also hosted well-known musicians and singers Reza Yazdani, Benyamin Bahadori, and Reza Sadeghi who were invited on stage to award the prize winners.
Cultural advisor to the president Hessameddin Ashena, director-general of the music office at the ministry of culture and Islamic guidance Pirouz Arjmand, and deputy culture minister for art affairs Ali Moradkhani attended the ceremony, Mehr news agency reported.
Arjmand said this is the first time such an event was organized in Iran, aimed at using audio-visual capacities long ignored in the country, to present music.
Hoping that the festival would open a new chapter in the production of video clips, he said the culture ministry is granting official certificates to video clips “in a bid to turn clip production into a dynamic industry.”
The function also lauded Abdollah Givian, the first artist to produce video clips in Iran.
Expressing joy “for not being forgotten,” Givian said it would be appropriate to pay tributes to other people who have made great contributions in the field as well, especially Ahmad Pournejati.
Appreciating artists working in the field of video clip production, Moradkhani said by introducing the masters to the younger generation, “it can serve as a valuable legacy for the future of arts and art researchers.”
He said the event should have been organized years earlier, and urged for its continuation, as “the new generation of artists is now motivated to create brilliant works of art.”
Prize Winners
Some of the prize winning video clips selected by the board of jurors, including well-known film director Pouran Derakhshandeh, are as follows: special effects: Hossein Boushehri and Mohammad Boushehri for “I Love You”; editing: Mastaneh Mohajer for “The Week of Love” (singer: Benyamin Bahadori); best imaging: Vahid Amini for “Any path you are standing in”; best song: Alireza Ghazveh for “Fishes” (singer: Mohammad Esfahani). Best poem: Late Seyed Hasan Hasani for “Sarab” (meaning mirage) (singer: Mohammad Esfahani). The prize was awarded to the Hasani family.
The prizes for best animation went to: Fatima Yasrebi for “Café Dream” (singer: Reza Yazdani); best romantic video clip: Behnam Karimi for “Excuse Me,” best love song: Reza Yazdani for “Dreams Café”; best director: Hossein and Mohammad Boushehri for “Labbeyk” video clip (singer: Hamed Zamani);
The award for best composer in the ‘sacred defense’ section went to Alireza Kohan-Deiri for ‘Fishes’ and the best social video clip production to Ashkan Khatibi for “The story of the Little girl and the Street’; “Pallett” group who performed a piece with the cooperation of German artists won the best anti-war clip and the best religious video clip went to singer Mohsen Chavoshi for “The Shameful Crow.”
Singer Maziar Fallahi for “Leila” (associated with a performance by the participation of the singer) got the prize for the best video clip for strengthening family-ties and “Kakobank” group for the overall best video clip.
