Brief Encounters, Mumbai, screens Jafar Panahi’s This is Not a Film

Made in 2011, This is Not a Film is a genre-defying, ground-breaking film (yes, it is a film) about the reputed Iranian film-maker, Jafar Panahi, made in collaboration with one of his friends, Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, who wields the camera too. It was shot secretly in, and from, the house and building of Panahi, where he was serving a house-imprisonment sentence, for having made anti-establishment films secretly, and for supporting the revolution against the ruling Iranian clergy. The film was screened as part of a monthly screening programme, at St. Paul's Institute, in its auditorium, on the 3rd floor Alberione Hall of the St. Paul’s complex, in Bandra, Mumbai, on 14 June. The event was organised by the Bandra-based Brief Encounters platform, represented by Ms. Aparajita Sinha and her team. Attendees included film-maker O.P. Srivastava and actor-model Naseer Abdullah. 

Mojtaba Mirtahmasb

Mubi, which does not offer this film for viewing, currently, says about the film, “It’s been months since Jafar Panahi, stuck in jail, has been awaiting a verdict by the appeals court. By depicting a day in his life, Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb try to portray the deprivations looming in contemporary Iranian cinema.” “Using the barest means but inspired by their art, passion, and existence in the world, Panahi and Mirtahmasb craft a masterpiece of truth," opines Daniel Kasman, and I could not agree more. Panahi has just won the Palme d’Or (Golden Palm) at Cannes 2025, for his latest, It Was Just an Accident’.

Panahi is a screen-writer, producer, director, cinematographer and editor, who confesses that he has no knowledge of the technicalities of film-making. Yet, over the years, he has directed many a classic: The White Balloon (1995), The Mirror (1997), The Circle (2000), Crimson Gold (2003), Offside (2006), The Accordion (2010), Taxi Tehran (2015), Where Are You, Jafar Panahi? (2016), 3 Faces (2018), Hidden (2020), Life (2021) and No Bears (2022). He is among the four Iranian film-makers that have achieved overwhelming international acclaim, the others being Abbas Kiarostami, Majid Majidi and Asghar Farhadi. Panahi started as an assistant to Abbas Kiarostami. Panahi left a message on Kiarostami's answering machine, saying that he loved his films, and asked him to give him the position of an assistant director on his next film. Kiarostami hired Panahi to assist him, for the film Through the Olive Trees

Educated at the Iran Broadcasting College of Cinema and TV, 65-year-old Jafar Panahi, born to an Azerbaijani father, began his career making short films. At the age of 20, At the same age, Panahi was conscripted into the Iranian army, and served in the Iran–Iraq War, working as an army cinematographer from 1980 to 1982. In 1981, he was captured by Kurdish rebels, and held for 76 days. From his war experiences, he made a documentary that was eventually shown on TV. His debut feature, The White Balloon (1995), won the Caméra d'Or (Golden Camera) at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. Panahi has been imprisoned multiple times in Iran, most recently for protesting the detention of film-makers criticising the authorities. This was his first visit to Cannes in 15 years, where his films have been shown in his absence due to a travel ban. The films were ‘smuggled’ to the festival venue in a pen-drive, by one of Panahi’s friends.

This is Not a Film has many moments when nothing really happens. It begins with Panahi having breakfast, and

 
The Waco Independent Film Festival will take place In-Theater - July 17-20/Online Encore July 20-26

 
Julia Barnett’s family favorite A Christmas in New Hope
is the Opening Night U.S. Premiere presentation 
and Chris Beier’s award-winning drama
The Ego Death of Queen Cecilia is set for the Closing Night

  
A Christmas in New Hope, The Ego Death of Queen Cecilia

 
Waco, TX (June 14, 2025) – The Waco Independent Film Festival announced the film lineup and events schedule for next month’s edition of the popular film festival, which recently was named as one of MovieMaker Magazine’s “50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee”. WIFF’s in-theater screenings will take place July 17-20, followed by an online encore July 20-26. The mark-your-calendar film event will lead off with an Opening Night presentation of Julia Barnett’s A Christmas in New Hope. Chris Beier’s The Ego Death of Queen Cecilia will be the Closing Night selection.
 
Waco Independent Film Festival’s footprint has expanded yet again, with screenings and events taking place at the historic Hippodrome, Texas Music Café, Falcon & Owl, Start Up Waco, and the Performing Arts Community Center. 
 
Waco Independent FF co-founders and directors Samuel Thomas and Louis Hunter, said, “While Waco Indie just got another stamp of approval from MovieMaker Magazine, the film festival has been building that reputation as a must-experience stop on the tour for indie filmmakers, and a popular ‘save the date’ destination for film fans for close to a decade now. But this year, as with every year, it all comes back to three key words: Waco, Independent, and Film. We may add locations, we may add more films, and events – and we always will because we keep seeing new ways to innovate, streamline, and assist our filmmakers with their development as artists. Ultimately though, and this year’s lineup demonstrates that: we never stop building and encouraging the Waco Indie family.”
 
Waco Indie’s Red Carpet entrances and Opening Night party, which has grown into one of Waco’s major social events, will take place at the Palladium (729 Austin Avenue), putting the film fans in the celebratory mood to literally enjoy Christmas in July with a special Opening Night presentation of Julia Barnett’s A Christmas in New Hope. The film stars Katrina Bowden as an influencer and mother of a child living with Down syndrome, who tries to save her bungalow from foreclosure before Christmas by entering a home-improvement competition in New Hope, Texas.Naturally, complications arise when her ex returns home after touring Europe with his new album. Meanwhile, she has fallen in love with her next-door neighbor, a Texas musician who has bonded with her daughter Charlie.
 
The official Closing Night selection will take place on Friday at the Texas Music Café featuring Chris Beier’s tense drama, The Ego Death of Queen Cecilia. Filmed in Austin, and an award-winner at Dances With Films: NY, the film focuses on a desperate on-the-edge former YouTube star who attempts to blackmail an old high school acquaintance in an attempt to make enough money to get her back on top again in the fame game. But she soon finds that she is in way over her head, at the mercy

St. Paul’s Institute, Mumbai, screens Jafar Panahi’s This is Not a Film

Made in 2011, This is Not a Film is a genre-defying, ground-breaking film (yes, it is a film) about the reputed Iranian film-maker, Jafar Panahi, made in collaboration with one who his friends, Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, who wields the camera too. It was shot secretly in and from the house and building of Panahi, where he was serving a house-imprisonment sentence, for having made anti-establishment films secretly and for supporting the revolution against the ruling Iranian clergy. The film was screened as part of the monthly screening programme of the Institute, in its auditorium, on the 3rd floor Alberione Hall of the St. Paul’s complex, in Bandra, Mumbai, on 14 June. The event was organised by Ms. Aparajita, and the attendees included film-maker O.P. Srivastava, actor-model Naseer Abdullah and the Head of the Film Department at St. Paul’s, Satish Bhatia.

Mojtaba Mirtahmasb

Mubi, which does not offer this film for viewing, currently, says about the film, “It’s been months since Jafar Panahi, stuck in jail, has been awaiting a verdict by the appeals court. By depicting a day in his life, Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb try to portray the deprivations looming in contemporary Iranian cinema.” “Using the barest means but inspired by their art, passion, and existence in the world, Panahi and Mirtahmasb craft a masterpiece of truth, opines Daniel Kasman, and I could not agree more. Panahi has just won the Palme d’Or (Golden Palm) at Cannes 2025, for his latest, It Was Just an Accident’.

Panahi is a screen-writer, producer, director, cinematographer and editor, who confesses that he has no knowledge of the technicalities of film-making. Yet, over the years, he has directed many a classic: The White Balloon (1995), The Mirror (1997), The Circle (2000), Crimson Gold (2003), Offside (2006), The Accordion (2010), Taxi Tehran (2015), Where Are You, Jafar Panahi? (2016), 3 Faces (2018), Hidden (2020), Life (2021) and No Bears (2022). He is among the four Iranian film-makers that have achieved overwhelming international acclaim, the others being Abbas Kiarostami, Majid Majidi and Asghar Farhadi. Panahi started as an assistant to Abbas Kiarostami. Panahi left a message on Kiarostami's answering machine, saying that he loved his films, and asked him to give him the position of an assistant director on his next film. Kiarostami hired Panahi to assist him, for the film Through the Olive Trees

Educated at the Iran Broadcasting College of Cinema and TV, 65-year-old Jafar Panahi, born to an Azerbaijani father, began his career making short films. At the age of 20, At age 20, Panahi was conscripted into the Iranian army, and served in the Iran–Iraq War, working as an army cinematographer from 1980 to 1982. In 1981, he was captured by Kurdish rebels, and held for 76 days. From his war experiences he made a documentary that was eventually shown on TV. His debut feature, The White Balloon (1995), won the Caméra d'Or (Golden Camera) at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. Panahi has been imprisoned multiple times in Iran, most recently for protesting the detention of film-makers criticising the authorities. This was his first visit to Cannes in 15 years, where his films have been shown in his absence due to a travel ban. The films were ‘smuggled’ to the festival venue in a pen-drive, by one of Panahi’s friends.

This is N