Mehdi Azimi Mirabadi, an actor, producer, and cinema expert, in an interview with the public relations of the 18th International Resistance Film Festival, emphasized the importance of producing high-quality works and presenting them appropriately in the international arena, and considered these two to be the main priorities for mainstreaming resistance cinema.
Referring to the necessity of creating a media space in festivals, he said: “If the media space is properly created, the festival can have a significant impact, but if this space is limited to a domestic event without widespread information, it will not have the necessary impact. For this reason, appropriate media coverage is not only necessary, but absolutely vital; especially when this event is held in a special location such as the Persian Gulf.”

Attention to the international sector; A factor for greater impact
Azimi Mirabadi considered the presence of international guests as another requirement of the festival and added: “If the festival is limited to the presence of domestic guests, it will have less success. The presence of prominent figures and foreign filmmakers can significantly increase the impact of the festival.”
He also pointed to the coordination problems in the previous edition and said: “It was heard that there were some inconsistencies in the stage layout and the presence of guests in the previous edition. We hope that these issues will be resolved this year so that we can witness a more coherent festival.”

Good film and proper presentation, two pillars of resistance cinema
This cinema expert, referring to the importance of creating a trend in resistance and sacred defense cinema, stated: “Resistance cinema has broad dimensions, but its final output must be the production of high-quality films and their proper presentation in the international arena. Sometimes valuable works are produced, but due to poor presentation, they are not seen and do not have the necessary impact.”

He added: “It can even be said that proper distribution is more important than producing a good film. Therefore, supporting institutions such as the Fatah Narrative Foundation and the Resistance and Sacred Defense Cinema Association should be very active in this field to produce films that attract a global audience.” It is worth noting that the 18th International Resistance Film Festival will be held in the Persian Gulf region in March of this year with the slogan “Resistance Discourse, Storm of Al-Aqsa, Freedom of Holy Quds” with the support of the Revolutionary and Sacred Defense Cinema Association and the Fatah Narrative Cultural Foundation.

For more information, visit the festival website at www.resistanceiff.com.