“It Was Just an Accident” filmmaker Jafar Panahi has been sentenced to one year in prison in Iran.
In addition to the prison sentence in abstentia, the Palme d’Or winner was hit with a two-year travel ban and prohibition of Panahi from membership in any political or social groups, his lawyer Mostafa Nili told AFP in an interview published Monday.
According to Nili, Panahi was charged with engaging in “propaganda activities” against the country, but no further details were shared. He did add that “Mr. Panahi is outside Iran right now.”
The Iranian director won the Palme d’Or for “It Was Just an Accident” at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in May and is expected to have a showing at the 98th Academy Awards in March, where it is France’s official selection for the Best International Feature Film.
Panahi is currently a resident of France and was previously arrested in 2010 and sentenced to six years in prison and a 20-year media and travel ban in his native Iran. The filmmaker continued making movies and smuggling them out of the country; “It Was Just an Accident” deals with victims of oppression who abduct a man they believe was their torturer in prison.
After its Cannes premiere, Neon acquired distribution rights to the film, which now means that the company has distributed the last six consecutive Palme d’Or winners, beginning with “Parasite” in 2019 and also including “Titane,” “Triangle of Sadness,” “Anatomy of a Fall” and last year’s winner, “Anora.”
Panahi is currently in New York City and expected to attend Monday’s Gotham Awards.
