Mohammad Rasoulof: The Aesthetics of Tyranny

Mohammad Rasoulof is considered one of the most important modern-day Iranian filmmakers. In his films, he exposes the inner workings of the Iranian regime and shows how political oppression and corruption shape the everyday lives of Iranians.

Rasoulof’s films themselves have also been marked by repression. During this edition of The State of the World, Rasoulof uses excerpts from his own body of work to demonstrate how political repression not only determines what an artist can speak about, but also influences form, imagination, and artistic choices. Over more than twenty years of working under censorship, his cinematic language has evolved from allegorical and indirect to more direct, sharp, and confrontational.

Mohammad Rasoulof’s work has received widespread international acclaim. He won the Golden Bear for There Is No Evil (2020) and the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for The Seed of the Sacred Fig. That film directly engages with the protests and repression that followed the death of Mahsa Amini.

Shortly before the film’s premiere, Rasoulof fled Iran after once again being sentenced to imprisonment because of his work and his criticism of the regime.

Ticketsale via Nederlands Theater Festival, the event will be held in De Balie’s Grote Zaal.