Certainly, one of the most important events and artistic gatherings, especially in the field of cinema, is the Fajr Film Festival. This festival, which has been going on for nearly 40 years since its inception, is not only a film festival, but has also become a symbol of the celebrations of the anniversary of the victory of Islamic Revolution.
According to Artmag, Fajr Film Festival has become a place for showing the latest works of Iranian cinema every year since it was held as a competition, and for this reason, most filmmakers and cinematographers were interested in having their first screening at the Fajr Film Festival, because apart from receiving awards and or not winning, the spirit of attending the festival and facing the serious cinema audience was a positive point for the owners of the works.
Ever since the International Section was added to the Fajr Film Festival, the format of this section has always been controversial. Some people believed that the international section should be held in the same way, and this section should be an opportunity for foreign filmmakers and officials of various international festivals to come to Iran during the Fajr Film Festival and see Iranian films for their festivals. Choose appropriate works.
The selection of Majid Majidi’s Baduk for the Cannes Film Festival and the selection of Children of Heaven for the Montreal Film Festival were the result of holding the Fajr and International Film Festivals together and simultaneously.
Unfortunately, following the Fajr Film Festival, due to an unprofessional decision and with goals such as the presence of foreign and first-class guests and the screening of World Cinema Day films, as well as a festival for filmmakers and specialized cinema enthusiasts, the cultural directors decided to divide these two sections. To be separated in such a way that the Fajr National Film Festival will be held in February and its international section next spring with the same name. But the five-year experience of holding this festival showed that this separation was completely wrong and today the two festivals have been merged again.
This merger can have several good advantages for Iranian cinema. First of all, it takes the Fajr Film Festival out of the confusion of time and place, because the two main factors for holding strong festivals in the world are the fixed time and place. Second, it saves money due to the simultaneous holding, and this is very important given the economic problems and the cowardly sanctions. Also, the simultaneous holding of both festivals can focus the power and energy of the organizers in one place and all cinematographers, both domestic and foreign, to watch Iranian and foreign films in a certain period of time.
