After the success of his thriller "The Law of Tehran" (2021) on the drug business and its repression by the mullahs' regime, Saeed Roustaee, 32, returns with a river film about a family on the verge of implosion .

The one who embodies the new guard of Iranian cinema tells AFP the difficulty of making films in his country, where censorship is the rule.

Censorship that directors must learn to deal with if they want to continue working.

"In Iran, there are red lines and there are many of them," he said.

In mid-May, Iranian filmmakers and actors, including award-winning directors Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof, denounced the arrest of several of their colleagues in Iran.

Asked about these arrests, Saeed Roustaee explains that he does not know the ins and outs of this case but is not surprised for all that: "You can very easily be arrested if you do not respect these red lines".

"To be able to film in Iran, you first need a permit. Getting this permit is a process. When you finally get it you can start shooting. But you will have to apply for another permit to distribute it in cinemas”, he explains.

Iranian filmmaker Saeed Roustaee in Cannes on May 26, 2022 LOIC VENANCE AFP

A censorship which is therefore exercised at two levels: the first allows the government to “validate” the scenario and the second to “verify” that the content of the film complies with its requirements.

If this is not the case, the government will ask for "changes".

"Clandestine Movies"

If the director refuses, the film will not be shown in the country.

"For my previous film, it took me nearly a year to get the first permit," he says.

Even today, the filmmaker is not certain that "Les frères de Leïla" will be able to be broadcast in Iran.

Although he obtained the first permit from the government of Hassan Rouhani, nothing assures him that the new conservative presidency, embodied by Ebrahim Raïssi, will grant him the permit for broadcasting.

Faced with this censorship, "many directors choose not to ask for a broadcasting license and make what they call clandestine films (...) which they send abroad", he reports. .

Iranian director Saeed Roustaee in Cannes on May 26, 2022 LOIC VENANCE AFP

Under these conditions, has he ever thought of leaving his country?

"No, he replies without batting an eyelid. This is where we have our roots. This is our country, this is our home".

Revealed by his second film "La loi de Tehran" - the first was never released in France - which was a public and critical success, Saeed Roustaee, made his first short films at the age of 15, before going to film school.

"For me, the most important thing is to tell a story (...) then and only then comes the content. If it can be humanist and pay homage to the social class (popular, editor's note) where I come from, better," he said.

"My first intention and my first passion is to make films", he insists.

When the AFP asks him for his inspirations, a film and only one comes to mind: "The Hole" (1960) by Jacques Becker, about prisoners preparing their escape.

The reason ?

The thirties, not very comfortable with the exercise of the interview, will not say.

© 2022 AFP