Iranian feature “Douch”, directed by Amir Mashhadi Abbas, has made it into the competition program of 10th DYTIATKO International Children’s Media Festival in Ukraine.

In its second international screening, Iranian feature “Douch”, directed by Amir Mashhadi Abbas, will take part at the competition section of the 10th DYTIATKO International Children’s Media Festival in Ukraine.

The film will compete with 15 other titles from Germany, Belarus, Singapore, Estonia, the Netherlands, Russia, Ukraine, Finland and Uzbekistan.

“Douch” narrates the story of a ten-year-old boy, Gholamreza, who is looking for money to replace his old bicycle. During his pursuit, he comes upon a contest that promises enough money for a new bicycle if he can manage to teach an illiterate person in the village how to read and write. Gholam decides to take part in the contest, and his pupil is a grouchy 90-year-old woman with really poor eyesight and hearing, who does not want to learn anything.

The film had previously taken part at the 59th Zlin International Festival for Children and Youth in the Czech Republic.

Founded in 2009, DYTIATKO International Children’s Media Festival brings together creative children and young people from different countries to the First Capital of Ukraine.

The 10th edition of the event will be held in Kharkiv on 4-7 September 2019. / MNA/

Iran’s vice president for science and technology says Tehran now sits among the world’s top technological cities, thanks to the tireless efforts by the city’s knowledge-based companies and academic institutes.

“Tehran has been ranked among the 50 top technological cities of the world for the second year,” Sorena Sattari said at the 17th festival of Best Companies of Pardis Technology Park on Saturday.

“This is a result of the abundant universities and research and scientific centers in the city,” he added.

Sattari noted that Tehran’s considerable human resources, along with its immense academic potentials, grant the sprawling capital a unique opportunity to develop its innovative plans.

This is of great significance since the knowledge-based sector can greatly contribute to oiling the wheels of the economy, he said.

The 17 festival of Best Companies of Pardis Technology Park is held annually to highlight the best businesses and products developed at Tehran’s first technology park, which is located 30 km east of the capital.

The park has a stellar record and has signed collaboration deals with academia to help promote the technology sector.

Selected companies picked by a panel of industry heads will be offered meetings with investors and awarded incentives to boost their potential.

Pardis Technology Park created a decade ago, is supervised by the Vice-Presidency’s Office for Science and Technology.

Tehran currently has 21 operational technology parks across the city affiliated to universities like Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran University, and Amir Kabir University. /MNA/

Foreign arrivals in the northern province of Gilan has increased by 10 percent since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21), from the corresponding period a year earlier.

About 26,000 foreign tourists stayed in resorts and hotels of Gilan since the beginning of the current Iranian year until August 22nd, showing a ten-percent rise year on year, provincial tourism chief Shahroud Amirentekhabi said, ISNA reported on Tuesday.

Bounded by the Caspian Sea and the Republic of Azerbaijan on the north, Gilan, in the far past, was within the sphere of influence of the successive Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, and Sassanid empires that ruled Iran until the 7th century CE.

Gilan is divided into a coastal plain including the large delta of Sefid Rud and adjacent parts of the Alborz mountain range. Paddy cultivation dominates the region. Tobacco, fruits, vegetables, and tea (grown in the foothills above the rice fields) are also being cultivated in the lush region.

The Islamic Republic welcomed 2,030,523 foreign nationals during the spring that shows a 40.66-percent increase year on year, according to data provided by the tourism ministry.

/ Tehran times/

Iran made history on Monday by claiming the bronze medal of 2019 West Asia Championship Women Basketball which was the team’s first medal in an international event after the Revolution.

In the third-place playoff match against Jordan in Amman, the Iranian team gained a 71-52 victory to write its name in the history book. Edna Issaeian led the Iranian team with 24 points and 18 rebounds.

The team which participated in the competition with Islamic dress code had gained one victory over Jordan (70-62) and conceded two defeats against Lebanon (88-75) and Syria (68-61) in the preliminary round.

It should be noted that the permit to attend international events while observing the Islamic dress code was granted to Iranian women basketball teams some two years ago. / MNA/

The Iranian Biotechnology Society is organizing the “3rd International and 11th National Iranian Biotechnology Science Congress” in early September.

The “3rd International and 11th National Iranian Biotechnology Science Congress”, organized by Iranian Biotechnology Society, is slated for September 1th to 3th, 2019 at Razi Conference Center in Tehran.

The event is described as the most important gathering of biotechnology specialists in Iran, and is expected to gather together more than 1,000 scientists, researchers, policy makers, academia, university professors and students.

The congress provides a platform for researchers and decision-makers in all aspects of biotechnology to present their latest findings and learn about important developments in these areas of science and technology.

The congress will cover different fields of biotechnology including: Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology; Plant Biotechnology; Animal Biotechnology; Industrial biotechnology; Environmental biotechnology; Mining Biotechnology; Nano Biotechnology; Bioinformatics and systems biology; and ethical issues in biotechnology. /MNA/

The 32nd edition of the International Film Festival for Children and Youth (IFFCY) was wrapped up on Monday evening with award ceremony after seven year of screening.

The ceremony, held in cinema complex of Isfahan’s City Center was attended by several prominent political, cultural and local figures.

Intercultural Dialogue is the message of IFFCY

Isfahan’s Mayor Qodratollah Norouzi was the first speaker of the ceremony. He said that the poster of the festival depicts five children from five continents, and this shows the importance of dialogue among nations and races.

The mayor added that envoys from 28 countries of the world have come to the IFFCY to talk and communicate with each other. He also highlighted the memoranda of understanding signed among Iran, Russia and South Korea on festival cooperation, and between Iran and Iraq on cinema and filmmaking issues.

Referring to the social achievements of the festival, Nowruzi said that the sense of responsibility, cooperation, and friendship were strengthened by the gathering

Golden Butterflies of IFFCY International Section

The Best Film of the international section of the IFFCY was “Hacker” by Signe Leick Jensen and Morten Kaufmann. The Golden Butterfly for the Best Animation was given to “Jacob, Mimi and the Talking Dogs”, produced by Sabine Andersone. The prize for the Best Short Animation went to “Cloudy” produced by Filip Diviak.

“Marine Boy” produced by Abbas Jalali-Yekta was announced as the Best Short Film, the script of “The Little Witch” received the Golden Butterfly written by Matthias Pacht.

Mahdi Jafari, director of “The 23” received the prize for the Best Director, and “Bille”, produced by Janis Juhnevics, won the prize for the Best Feature.

The Special Award of the Jury went to the “Chuskit” , directed and produced by Priya Ramassuban.

In the CIFEJ Award section, the jury awarded the special prize to “The Falcons” jointly produced by Anna Vigdis Gísladóttir and Thorhallur Gunnarsson.

Veteran IFFCY director honored

At the ceremony, also, Alireza Rezadad was honored for years of managing the festival, as well as his great contribution to the cinema of Iran, particularly in the field of children and young adults.

In his appreciation, a clip was screened in which several prominent Iranian filmmakers complimented him for his role over the past years.

Rezadad directed six editions of the festival, and is now senior adviser at Cinema Organization of Iran.

In his short speech, he underscored the social responsibility of the filmmakers in the field of children, and said he would like to extend the diploma of appreciation to those who have been making much effort to relieve the suffering of children in the flood-hit areas.

Children lead adults to humanitarian cinema

In another part of the ceremony, Iran’s Minister of Culture Abbas Salehi addressed the audience. He said that these are children and the youth who can make us closer to a humanitarian cinema.

“The cinema for children provides us with numerous opportunities, including innocent imaginations, enjoying films along with family, and having a social cinema,” he said.

He noted that in the last Persian year (March 21, 2018-March 20, 2019) 15 films were screened in Iran’s cinemas, and one of the top 10 best seller films belonged to the children genre.

Gloden Butterflies of the IFFCY national section

In the National Section of the festival, the Golden Butterfly of the festival for the best script was awarded to the film “The 23” written by Mahdi Jafari. Alireza Akbari won the Golden Butterfly for acting in the “No-Fly Zone”.

The prize for the Best Director went to Amir-Hossein Ghahraiee who made the film “Bazivou”.

“The 23” also claimed the Golden Butterfly for the Best Film produced by Mojtaba Faravardeh.

The Jury’s Golden Butterfly was awarded to Behrouz Rashad for producing the film “That Night’s Train”.

Foreign films fruits of Iran’s cultural diplomacy

Abbas Rezaie, Governor of Isfahan Province in the ceremony said that the presence of foreign films from 27 countries along with Iranian films indicates that the country’s cultural diplomacy has been successful.
He added that the city of Isfahan has played a big role in the richness of Iran’s culture and art in the history, and the 32nd edition of the festival witnesses to the claim.

The governor also praised the 32nd edition of the festival for understanding the social responsibilities, planning to include labor and disabled children, and taking portable cinemas to 123 areas of Iran, including the flood-stricken and less privileged regions in Isfahan.

Head of United Nation’s Children Fund (UNICEF) in Iran Mandeep O’brien, Cinema Organization of Iran Hossein Entezami, Director of the 32nd edition of the festival Alireza Tabesh, Mayor of Isfahan Qodratollah Nowruzi, General Director of Isfahan’s Culture Directorate Mohammad-Ali Ansari, Iran’s Vice-President for Women and Family Affairs Massoumeh Ebtekar and several acclaimed Iranian filmmakers, actors and actresses also attended the ceremony.

The festival, where more than 180 films were screened, was officially inaugurated on August 19. It hosted some 80 foreign guests from 27 countries. / MNA/

Iran tourism chief has said that medical [and health] travelers constitute a significant share of arrivals in the country.

“[Nearly] 7.8 million foreign nationals visited Iran over the past [Iranian calendar] year [ended March 20] that a significant number of whom were medical tourists,” Mehr quoted Ali-Asghar Mounesan as saying on Monday.

Mounesan made the remarks on the sidelines of the opening ceremony of a radiotherapy and chemotherapy center in Arak, west-central Iran.

“During the first three months of this year, the number of tourists arriving in the country increased by 40 percent, again [significant] part of whom was health tourism,” he added.

“Medical tourism is one of the most important fields of Iran’s travel sector and an [average] spending of $2,400 per tourist indicates its importance.”

Mounesan who doubles as vice president added that such figures demonstrate there is a good opportunity in the country in terms of medical and health tourism, and Arak should take such an advantage too.

Iran hosted a record high of nearly 600,000 medical travelers during the first four months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-July 21), nearly equal to the figure for the whole past year, according to an Iranian association for the health tourism promotion.

People from the Persian Gulf littoral states, Iraq and Syria as well as Iranian expatriates residing in Canada and Germany constituted the majority of medical travelers to the Islamic Republic, who received plastic, cosmetic, open-heart and orthopedic surgeries amongst other treatments, Mohammad Panahi, a deputy for the association, said in July.

Medical tourism fetched Iran some $1.2 billion last year, Panahi said, adding that the figure has increased by 20-30 percent in the first four months of this year.

Many domestic experts say that medical tourism in Iran produces win-win outcomes as the country yields considerable benefits to international health-care seekers, offering affordable yet quality treatment services.

Iranian hospitals admitted nearly 70,000 foreign patients over the last year, according to the medical tourism department at the Ministry of Health.

The Islamic Republic has set its goals to exceed its yearly medical travelers to around 2 million in [calendar year] 1404 (March 2025-March 2026). / Tehran times /

The organizers of the 21st Iran Cinema Celebration honored four influential figures in Iranian cinema for their lifetime achievements in a special ceremony on Tuesday night.

Stage and screen actor Akbar Zanjanpur, makeup artist Bijan Mohtashem, sound engineer Hassan Zahedi and director Sirus Alvand received lifetime achievement awards during the ceremony organized at the Eyvane Shams Hall.

Speaking at the ceremony, Iranian House of Cinema director Manuchehr Shahsavari called culture the field of friendship, respect and unity, and said ,”If an individual enters cinema without these, he/she will not succeed.”

“What gives us the opportunity to work in the field cinema, despite all these hardships, is our unity, and if we don’t take the time and have patience, the future of Iran’s cinema will be dark and painful,” he added.

“Tonight is the night to feel relieved after 53 years of constant work,” Zanjanpur said after accepting his award.

“I am happy to be honored by my colleagues at the Iranian House of Cinema. Artists are lonely and this loneliness gives credit to an artist, and I am one of the lonely ones,” he added.

Mohtashem was the next honoree, and prominent make-up artist Abdollah Eskandari talked about Mohtashem on stage and said, “The history of make-up in Iranian cinema is mingled with Mohtashem. During those years when make-up had no meaning in cinema, Mohtashem went to the U.S. to learn the art and returned back home and trained many students, including me.”

“Tonight is a big honor for me to be beside masters of cinema. I must express thanks to those who I have worked with all these years,” Zahedi said on stage.

Alvand was the last who went on onstage to receive his lifetime achievement award.

“Four nights are very important for me, one is my birthday night, the other is the night I married my only love Nahid Abbasi, the third was the night I received the best director award and the fourth surely is tonight,” Alvand concluded.

The Iranian House of Cinema organizes the celebration every year to commemorate Iran’s National Day of Cinema, which is September 12. However, this year’s celebration will be held a few weeks earlier due to its coincidence with the Muharram mourning season.

“When the Moon Was Full” and “Sheeple” led nominations at the 21st Iran Cinema Celebration, as each of the movies got the jury’s nods in 14 categories.

The movies are competing in best film, best director, best actor, best actress, best costume design, best stage design and several other categories. / Tehran times/

The 32nd International Film Festival for Children and Youth in Isfahan has announced the jury members for three international sections of the festival.

The jury members are slated to select the best films lining up at the festival’s short and feature, CIFEJ, and animation sections.

Liya Gilmutdinova (Russia), Jung Hyun Yoo (South Korea), Daw-Ming Lee (China), Katharina Dockorn (Germany), Sara Kasir (Lebanon), Mohammad Mahdi Asgharpour (Iran), and Leili Rashidi (Iran) will select the best short and feature films of this section.

The top films in CIFEJ section will be selected by Dragan Fimon Milinkovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Fatma Aloo (Tanzania) and Mohammad Bakhshi (Iran).

In a meantime, the top animation films will be selected by Alexandre Athane (France), Izabela Plucinska (Poland), Niels Putman (Belgium), Mikhail Tumelya (Belarus) and Amir Saharkhiz (Iran).

The jury panel for the national section include Iraj Tahmaseb, Amrollah Ahmadjou, Gholamreza Ramezani, Sareh Bayat, Marjan Ashrafizadeh, Hamed Jafari, and Ali Mazaheri.

Presided by Alireza Tabesh, the 32nd International Film Festival for Children and Youth is currently underway in Province of Isfahan through August 26 in the national and international sections. /MNA/