1. Mohammad Rasoulof is an Iranian independent filmmaker who lives in exile in Europe.
24 Facts About Mohammad Rasoulof
1. 2.
Mohammad Rasoulof is known for several award-winning films, including The Twilight, Iron Island, Goodbye, Manuscripts Don't Burn, A Man of Integrity and There Is No Evil.
3.
In 2025, Rasoulof was named one of the 100 Most Influential People by Time.
4.
Mohammad Rasoulof has been arrested several times and had his passport confiscated, as the nature and content of his films has brought him into conflict with the Iranian Government.
5.
In May 2024, following the announcement that his film The Seed of the Sacred Fig was selected in the main competition at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced by the Islamic Republic to 8 years in prison, whipping, and a fine.
6.
Mohammad Rasoulof fled to a safe house in Germany after the sentencing.
7.
Mohammad Rasoulof was born on 16 November 1972 in Shiraz, Iran.
8.
Mohammad Rasoulof graduated with a bachelor's degree in sociology from Shiraz University, and he has studied film editing at Soore University, Tehran.
9.
In June 2017, Mohammad Rasoulof was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
10.
In 2024, Mohammad Rasoulof served as the president of the New Currents jury at the 29th Busan International Film Festival.
11.
In 2010, Mohammad Rasoulof was arrested on set and accused of filming without a permit.
12.
Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced to six years in prison, later reduced to one year.
13.
On 23 July 2019, Mohammad Rasoulof was convicted by the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Iran to one-year imprisonment and a two-year ban on leaving the country and on participation in social and political activity because of his film A Man of Integrity.
14.
Mohammad Rasoulof is accused of "gathering and collusion against national security and of propaganda against the system".
15.
On 4 March 2020, Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced to one year in prison for three of his movies, which were considered "propaganda against the system".
16.
Mohammad Rasoulof has stated that he intends to appeal the decision and will not turn himself in, considering the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which had already led Iran to release 54,000 prisoners temporarily in order to prevent the virus from spreading.
17.
Mohammad Rasoulof was scheduled to take part in the 2023 Cannes Film Festival as a jury member of the Un Certain Regard section.
18.
Mohammad Rasoulof was temporarily released from prison in February 2023 due to his health.
19.
On 8 May 2024, Mohammad Rasoulof's lawyer announced that the director has been sentenced to eight years in prison as well as flogging, a fine and confiscation of his property.
20.
Mohammad Rasoulof traveled on foot for several hours with a guide to a village at the border on the Iranian side, where he waited for the appropriate time to cross.
21.
Mohammad Rasoulof was transferred to a safe house in a village on the non-Iranian side, where he waited for an extended period of time.
22.
Mohammad Rasoulof was then moved to a town with a German consulate.
23.
Mohammad Rasoulof's passport had been seized by Iranian authorities, so he had no documents to identify himself.
24.
However, Mohammad Rasoulof previously lived in Germany so he contacted the German authorities, who were able to identify him using his fingerprints and issued him a temporary travel document which he used to travel to Germany.