Iran govt releases 2 doc filmmakers

MUMBAI: The Iranian government has released two of the six filmmakers arrested for suspicion of working for the BBC and sentenced actress Marzieh Vafamehr to a year in jail and 90 lashes for starring in the Australian film My Tehran for Sale that premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival.

Directed by Granaz Moussavi and shot entirely in Tehran, My Tehran for Sale stars Vafamehr as a stage actress who plots to flee Iran with the help of a man she meets at an underground rave. Though banned in Iran, the film was illegally distributed in the country.

The two filmmakers who were freed last Saturday are Naser Safarian and Mohsen Shahnazdar. It has been stated that Safarian was released on bail equivalent to about $160,000.