<p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Iranian director Jafar Panahi has been making social cinema since the 1990s. His work follows everyday Iranians and their struggles against societal forces. In 2010 the director received a ban on filmmaking from the Iranian government, and in 2022 he was imprisoned after he inquired into a fellow filmmaker’s arrest. Despite being jailed and censored, Panahi has continued to work. His films such as "The Circle,” “Taxi” and “No Bears” have won awards from the top film festivals in the world.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Now his latest film, “It Was Just an Accident,” </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/movies/interactive/2026/oscars-nomination-list-2026/?utm_source=podcasts&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">has been nominated for two Oscars</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;"> for best international feature film and best original screenplay.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The film follows a group of former Iranian political prisoners who kidnap a man they suspect was their torturer, but they aren’t totally sure it’s him. Panahi shot the film in secret in Iran because he didn’t have official government permission to make it. While it is receiving critical acclaim around the world, it’s being repressed in Iran, where the government </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/movies/2025/12/02/jafar-panahi-iran-prison/?utm_source=podcasts&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">recently handed Panahi </a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">a new prison sentence.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today on “Post Reports” Elahe Izadi speaks with Jafar Panahi about how he made “It Was Just an Accident” and why he is planning to return to Iran once his awards campaign is over.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">The two spoke this month, before this week’s Oscar nominations and the most recent escalation of anti-government demonstrations and crackdowns in Iran.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Today’s show was produced by Lucas Trevor, Joshua Carroll and Sam Bair, who also mixed it.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">It was edited by Elana Gordon and Peter Bresnan, with help from Reena Flores.</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Thanks to Neon for movie clips and photos.</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Subscribe to The Washington Post </span><a href="https://subscribe.washingtonpost.com/acquisition/?s_l=OFFSITE_PODCAST&amp;p=s_v&amp;s_dt=yearly&amp;utm%5B%E2%80%A6%5De-podcast&amp;utm_medium=acq-nat&amp;utm_campaign=podcast-subs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">here</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">. And watch us on YouTube </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLr2DCTYKljMt7UKCI0o1E7TjWu6Hu4Jbi" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">here</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">.</span></p>