TEHRAN – Iran’s Farabi Cinema Foundation (FCF) and the Russian Cinematographers’ Union have signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on joint film projects.

The MOU was inked on Tuesday in Moscow in a meeting between the foundation’s director Mehdi Javadi and the union’s president Nikita Mikhalkov.

“Despite all the historical affinities between Iran and Russia, it seems that there is a dearth of knowledge of each other; cinema can improve the situation,” Javadi at the meeting. 

“Working on joint film projects and cultural cooperation could help develop mutual understanding between the two countries,” he added.

The MOU will also ease the way for organizing film weeks and festivals and conducting joint research projects.

On his part, Mikhalkov called the Oscars a race that is handled by the White House and CIA and said that Hollywood’s dominance has been challenged in the world by films from Asia, Latin America and Russia. 

He suggested the launching of a joint film prize by Russia, Iran, China, India and countries in Latin America and Eurasia.

“Many filmmakers struggle worldwide to win an Oscar, but we can unite to launch an award representing our national ideology; an award, for example, worth one million dollars,” he explained.

Yuri Ivanovich Kolosov, director of the International Department of the Russian Cinematographers’ Union, also attended the meeting.

He said the MOU will help boost collaboration between the organizations and Iranian and Russian filmmakers. 

He added that Iranian filmmakers are frequent visitors to Russian film festivals and hoped that the MOU would increase this tendency. 

Launching an award similar to the Academy Awards has previously been suggested by other Russian cineastes. 

Earlier in December 2022, Valery Ivanovich Tonkikh, an official of the Russian Cinematographers’ Union, said that Russia was seeking to collaborate with Iran to provide an alternative to the Oscars, the U.S. film gala organized annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

He made the remarks during a visit to Tehran during a review program for several new Russian films organized at Iran’s Farabi Cinema Foundation.

Tonkikh also announced the union’s plan to launch a film society of the Caspian states and a Eurasia film academy with contributions from Iranian film organizations.

Photo: Russian Cinematographers’ Union director Nikita Mikhalkov (L) and FCF director Mehdi Javadi exchange documents after signing a memorandum of understanding in Moscow on June 20, 2023.

MMS/YAW