The Iranian directors of My Favorite Cake have been handed suspended prison sentences amid mounting repression, just weeks ahead of the Cannes Film Festival. Their internationally acclaimed film challenges the limits of state censorship in Iran.
The Iranian directors of the film My Favorite Cake, praised in both France and the United States, have been sentenced to suspended prison terms, according to an independent legal website and a human rights NGO.
Maryam Moghadam and Behtash Sanaeeha, already recognized in 2020 for Ballad of a White Cow, were prosecuted for “propaganda against the regime” and “obscenity.” They had already been barred from traveling to France for the film’s release earlier this year.
According to the legal website Dabdan, both directors received 14-month suspended prison sentences. Along with their producer, Gholamreza Mousavi, they were also given a one-year suspended sentence, fined 400 million rials (about 8,500 euros), and had their equipment confiscated.
The judgment was issued on March 1 by a Revolutionary Court in Tehran, according to the New York–based Center for Human Rights in Iran (ICHRI).
“Artists in Iran face harsh conditions, including censorship, arbitrary detention, and the constant threat of prosecution,” ICHRI commented.
My Favorite Cake won an award at the Chicago International Film Festival in 2024, but the directors were unable to leave Iran as their passports had been confiscated.
The film tells a love story between two Iranian septuagenarians and explores the lost dreams of a generation that lived through the Islamic Revolution. It openly defies Iran’s strict censorship laws—indoors, lead actress Lili Farhadpour appears without a headscarf.
Filming took place during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protest movement, sparked by the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the morality police. The film makes clear references to the movement.
The sentencing comes just weeks before the Cannes Film Festival, where Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi—himself previously imprisoned—will compete with his latest film.
With AFP
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