TEHRAN-There is a void for films with religious approaches in the local cinema industry, which needs to be filled by works infused with sacrifice, devotion, and peace resulting from faith. The 1st International Rezvan Festival on Religious Films has been planned to comply with such requirements, the festival secretary said on Monday.

Speaking at the press conference for the first edition of the festival at Soureh Cinema Organization in Tehran, Mohammad Hossein Latifi emphasized the need to focus on religious films and said: “The national section of the festival will take place later this year in October and the international section will be held in May 2025”. 

The event is organized by the Imam Reza (AS) International Art and Cultural Foundation and is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. The first edition of the Rezvan Festival will be held as part of the 21st Imam Reza (AS) International Festival.

The Imam Reza (AS) International Festival is held annually in various provinces of the country as well as in several other countries. It encompasses various fields such as articles, plays or screenplays, produced shows, stories, visual arts, books, literary texts, poetry, press and digital works, and radio and television productions. This year, for the first time, it has added the film section to its festivals.

The festival will receive short and semi-feature fiction, animated, and documentary films made by young filmmakers (not older than 33). Films produced from 2023 onward are eligible for participation in the competitive section. Additionally, non-competitive screenings will feature relevant works produced in previous years.

In response to a question posed by Tehran Times regarding the absence of feature-length films in the festival, Latifi explained that their goal is to prepare the ground for young filmmakers to practice making short films revolving around the themes of the festival to get ready for creating feature films in the future.

“For this edition, the focus is on short and semi-feature films, with a maximum duration of 20 minutes for shorts and 45 minutes for semi-feature narratives,” he added, noting that the festival seeks to increase the number of religious-themed cinematic works in the coming years. 

Also speaking at the event, Farhad Ghaemian, the secretary of the 21st Imam Reza (AS) International Festival, announced that the festival is ready to receive works from April 29. 

“The festival organizers are also planning for educational workshops to identify talents in the field of filmmaking, to be held in the coming months,” he added.

Seyed Javad Refaei, the strategic advisor to the CEO of the Imam Reza (AS) International Art and Cultural Foundation was another speaker during the press conference. He highlighted that the festival features two main categories: the religious category encompassing all faiths and the Razavi category centered around the Islamic world and Imam Reza (AS). 

“Notably, the festival places special emphasis on debut films, which will be evaluated separately,” he added.

“We also have a mobile filmmaking category, open to the public, inviting everyone to participate in filmmaking. Additionally, our “From Idea to Film” category aims to support those with filmmaking ideas but limited resources for production. We intend to harness their creativity and talent,” he noted.

In response to the Tehran Times’ query on how the festival is to maximize the impact of short films within society, Refaei mentioned collaborations with national channels of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting to air them. 

“There have also been negotiations with the Cinema Organization of Iran, so that short films can be screened in movie theaters before feature-length films and made available online,” he asserted.

The unveiling of the poster for the first International Rezvan Festival on Religious Films marked the end of the ceremony.

SS/