.jpg "“Painting Pool” producer Manucher Mohammadi (3rd from left), director Maziar Miri (3rd from right), Australian Ambassador Paul Foley (C), and members of the film’s cast and crew pose after Mohammadi received the APSA UNESCO Award for the film at the ambassador’s official residence in Tehran on February 17, 2014. (ISNA/Hamidreza Dastjerdi)")
TEHRAN – “The Painting Pool” producer Manucher Mohammadi received the UNESCO Award, which his film won at the 7th Annual Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) in Australia in December 2013, during a ceremony in Tehran on Monday.
The ceremony was organized by the Embassy of Australia and Ambassador Paul Foley handed over the award to Mohammadi at his official residence.
Director Maziar Miri, actress Negar Javaherian, scriptwriter Hamed Mohammadi, a representative from the UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office, members of the Iranian House of Cinema and Iran’s Sureh Cinema Organization also attended the ceremony.
“It is easy to see why the film impressed the judges,” Foley said.
“It is a sympathetic and moving portrayal of the struggles of Soheil and his parents, and the family of Soheil’s teacher, set against the very recognizable backdrop of contemporary Tehran” he added.
Mohammadi dedicated the award to Miri, who also presented it to scriptwriter Hamed Mohammadi.
The film won the UNESCO Award for “outstanding contribution to the promotion and preservation of cultural diversity through film,” the APSA jury previously said during at the award ceremony in Brisbane in December 2013.
Since Mohammadi and his colleagues were unable to attend the APSA ceremony in Brisbane, they received the award in Tehran.
APSA is endorsed by UNESCO, with which it shares a common goal -– to foster cultural diversity and promote mutual understanding, dialogue and peace.
APSA also has the endorsement of the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF), which regulates the world’s most important film festivals and events.
SB/YAW
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