Cannes Film Festival awards Palme d'Or to Iranian drama 'It Was Just an Accident'

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00:00A dissident director at the pinnacle of cinema.

00:09Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi has won the Palme d'Or for a film he had to make in secret.

00:15He and his cast and crew shot It Was Just An Accident clandestinely in Iran,

00:20his home country, where his work is banned.

00:23We're at this moment together where no one can tell us what to wear,

00:32what we have to say, what we're not allowed to do.

00:39Cinema's a society. No one has the right to tell us what to do and what not to do.

00:44It Was Just An Accident follows a group of formerly jailed Iranians

00:54who seek revenge against the man they believe tortured them.

00:57It's partly inspired by the director's own experiences in prison and solitary confinement.

01:04Panahi has long been a thorn in the side of the Iranian powers that be.

01:08Though he's primarily a social rather than a political filmmaker,

01:12he's shone a light on aspects of Iranian society they would prefer to keep in the shadows.

01:18He's also supported mass anti-government protests

01:21and consistently spoken out against the oppression of women.

01:26This year was his first at an international festival in many years

01:29after a long-standing ban on leaving Iran was lifted.

01:33After the ceremony, he dedicated his Palme d'Or to other artists whose work is suppressed.

01:38This isn't really for me.

01:43It's for all the filmmakers who can't work.

01:46But we hope that after this award, they'll be able to find a way to make films.

01:52The award will put more scrutiny than ever on Jafar Panahi,

01:56but he says he's not afraid to return to Iran.

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