The 1st Night of Cinema, the first celebration of Cinema Daily newspaper to select the best of Iran cinema, was held on Monday, (June 6), at Espinas Palace Hotel in Tehran.
Renowned film director and screenwriter Fereydoun Jeyrani who is the managing director of ‘Cinema’, which focuses on the domestic film industry, pointed to the rare private celebrations for Iran cinema and said since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, there was only ‘Hafez Celebration’ held by Ali Moallem - film producer and editor-in-chief of Donya-ye-Tasvir (Picture World) Magazine, Mehr News Agency reported.
“I hope this celebration is the beginning of a new era for Cinema Daily,” Jeyrani said adding that the ceremony will also award the winners of the 34th Fajr Film Festival (FFF) based on the votes of the daily’s jury.
Five Winners
Reza Mirkarimi received the best film award for ‘Daughter’ from actress Negar Javaherian.
Actress Leila Hatami won the best actress award for her role in ‘I’. Receiving the prize from the veteran actress Bita Farrahi, Hatami dedicated it to the film director Soheil Beiraqi “for his ambition, perseverance and intelligence”.
Filmmaker Saeed Roustaei and actor Navid Mohammadzadeh won the best script and best actor awards respectively for ‘Life+1 Day’. They had won the same prizes at the 34th FFF in February.
Actress Merila Zarei presented the best director award to Ebrahim Hatamikia for ‘Bodyguard’.
“Jeyrani is dear to me and I value him a lot; as I move on, I can see his presence is worthy to the cinema. He is the model of perfection and politeness for us,” Hatamikia said.
Jeyrani, 65, is a film director, screenwriter and TV presenter with many successful movies and programs who started his artistic career as a journalist and movie critic before turning to filmmaking.
He started publishing Cinema Daily last September as the third Iranian newspaper dealing specifically with local movie productions and related issues. He is also hosting a talk show titled ‘35’ where he speaks candidly with famous actors and directors about hot current issues of Iran cinema. The program is broadcast online.
Unforgettable Figure
A part of the event was dedicated to paying tribute to the late actor Mohammad Ali Fardin (1931-2000) and honoring his family.
Veteran movie and TV series director Ziaeddin Dorri, who is an old friend of Fardin, said people loved him and his works wholeheartedly and the level of his popularity among the public is compared to no other actor in Iran. “Fardin is like Raj Kapoor in India and Clark Gable in Hollywood,” Dorri said.
Fardin was a popular actor before the 1979 Islamic Revolution who played in over 60 movies. After the revolution, he starred in only two films. He died at the age of 69 in 2000 and more than 20,000 people attended his funeral in Tehran.
Fardin’s son and grandchildren were commended at the festival.
