Jafar Panahi is an Iranian film director who started his career in the Iranian Military. He was involved in the Iran-Iraq War as a Cinematographer for the Iranian Army from 1980 to 1982. He was captured by the rebels and used inspiration from that to develop a documentary.
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When he left the military, he attended the College of Cinema and TV in Tehran. Before graduating in 1988, he worked as an assistant director on his Professor’s film.
Panahi made his debut short film dubbed The Wounded Heads (Yarali Bashlar) during that period. It was about the illegal mourning tradition of head slashing in the Azerbaijan region of northern.
In 2009, a travel ban and filmmaking ban were imposed on him by the government of the Islamic Republic for “making propaganda against the system.”
According to the authorities, Panahi was arrested because “he tried to make a documentary about the unrest that followed the disputed 2009 reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.”
Panahi was arrested on March 1, 2010, along with his wife and daughter, but the women were released after a few days. He remained in section 209 inside Evin Prison until May 25, 2010, when he was released on $200,000 bail while awaiting trial.
He was convicted of “assembly and colluding with the intention to commit crimes against the country’s national security and propaganda against the Islamic Republic,” on December 20, 2010.
His wife Tahereh Saeedi posted a picture of them at an undisclosed airport with the caption that translates into English;
“After 14 years, Jafar’s ban was canceled and finally we are going to travel together for a few days.”
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