- BERLIN - Making movies in Iran is becoming increasingly difficult because of economic constraints that art house directors say leave them dependent on outside funding and fueling a lively underground scene.
Director Rafi Pitts said Wednesday at the Berlin Film festival that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government has largely dismantled the cinema industry by channeling funding into television and restricting money for independent films.
Documentary filmmaker Nadar Davoodi said this has driven many young directors into an underground scene that thrives on modern technology.
Pitts and Davoodi were speaking on a panel of Iranian filmmakers screening movies at the festival. Director Jafar Panahi was to have attended but Iranian authorities refused to allow him to travel.