Jafar Panahi to Receive Cinema Honorary Award, ‘Stranger Eyes’ to Open 35th Singapore Film Festival
variety.comNaman Ramachandran Iranian cinema icon Jafar Panahi will mark the lifting of his 14-year travel ban by attending the 35th Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF).
The festival’s lineup spotlights rising Singaporean talent and international auteurs. The festival will open with Yeo Siew Hua’s “Stranger Eyes,” the first Singaporean film to premiere in the main competition at the Venice Film Festival.
Panahi, set to receive the festival’s Cinema Honorary Award, recognizing filmmakers who have made exceptional and enduring contributions to Asian cinema, will participate in an exclusive dialogue session.
Several of his films will be screened, including “The Circle” and “This Is Not a Film.” “It’s an incredible honor to be selected as the recipient of the Cinema Honorary Award by SGIFF,” Panahi said. “Since my visit to the festival in 1998 with my film, ‘The Mirror,’ I have been deeply impressed by the festival’s achievements in nurturing and encouraging emerging filmmakers and film critics, while promoting Asian filmmaking.” The festival introduces new initiatives under the leadership of Jeremy Chua, the new general manager.
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