Farrokh Ghaffari: The Man Who Changed the Face of Iranian Cinema

Iranian cinema is regarded and acknowledged highly as an art cinema all over the world. The films made are loved and lauded by the critics and audience alike.

It is worth noting that it took decades for Iranian cinema to get to this point of respect and appreciation.

Several people worked tirelessly to clear the thorns in its path to the glory. The one man who dreamed about a modern Iranian Cinema and genuinely tried making his visions about the cinema there come true was Farrokh Ghaffari.

The famous veteran Iranian movie critic, Farrokh Ghaffari is considered as one of the forerunners of “Iranian New Wave Cinema” in the early 1960s, and the founder of “Iranian Film Archive”.

He was a popular name not only to Iranian cinema industry, but also in the film society of France.

From writing in the popular film magazine “Positive” to associating with Henri Langlois in running the ‘Cinematheque Francaise’ in the heart of France, Paris, post World War II, he lived a life getting inspired by the wonders and evolution of world cinema.

Ghaffari was born in Tehran on 7th of March 1921 to a wealthy family, in the house of Hassan Ali Khan Moavendoleh. His parents were government bureaucrats under the rule of Shah.

As a young man, at the age of 11, he moved to Paris to study. He became interested in films and film-making while studying there. He was introduced to the fascinating world of silent movies of the time and then from there on grew up parallel to the evolution and growth of modern cinema around the globe.

After his graduation in a boarding school, he enrolled in film studies. There he attempted to comprehend the ways of film-making and its representation.

During his first visit, Ghaffari remained in Europe for 16 years. For the second time, his father sent him for education at the University of Grenoble, France. There he studied Law for 1 year and then enrolled in Literature study for next 2 years.

Ghaffari tells that it was there that he learned that, contrary to his previous beliefs, in a film the major factor are not the actors but the director who runs all the things.

That give him a new perspective about cinema.

When he arrived back in Iran, he looked at Iranian cinema and compared the regional films of the time to that of European and American films. He soon came to the realization that the majority of what was being made in the name of cinema was thrash.

He established a film company by archiving the best films he had access to. He also started a film magazine during this time.

He was the first to establish a serious film criticism tradition in Iran. He criticized the films harshly, analyzed them in details, and clarified the bad and goods in the movies.

His critical articles gradually gained popularity, and other writers and filmmakers became associated with him, and thus forming a caravan.

Farrokh Ghaffari’s critique caravan drew a large number of critics, but the main question remained: if current films are useless, what is a good film?

To answer this question, Ghaffari made a film called “Jonobeh Shahr (Southern City)” in 1958. The film was a portrayal of the lives and problems of the poor who lived on the outskirts of Tehran.

The film was not much successful. Despite his failure, he continued his efforts in making art cinema.

Ghaffari completely rejected the notion that filmmakers should only present what the public demands. A film, according to him, is beyond imagination, that is, it is something that even an idea cannot control. It depicts the world beyond the idea.

What is beyond the idea can’t be built on a preconceived notion of public opinion, right?

According to him, the film itself creates a new world and subconsciously incorporates its audience into it. Making it permanent is a defiance of the proven law of change.

Under this stance and beliefs, he emphasized that Iranian cinema must change its course; that if it continues on the current path, it would neither develop nor achieve modernization and, thus, would not be able to compete with the cinemas of the changing world.

Ghaffari’s vision was initially rejected; he was mocked and dubbed “the enemy of entertainment”. However, it was not long before came a time when Abbas Kiarostami established himself as one of the greatest directors not only in Iran but in the whole world.

And then one day, an Iranian film received an Academy Award.

His two masterpieces are “Jonobeh Shahr (Southern City)” released in 1958, and “Shab-e Ghuzi (The Night of the Hunchback)” in 1963.

He also served as the chairman of the Shiraz Film Festival, and as the director of the Iranian Radio and Television.

Farrokh Ghaffari was a film critic who laid the first brick with a pen and paper on which a magnificent structure now stands, the Iranian Cinema.

Disclaimer: The original version of this article was published on another platform. Here is the link to the original version: https://medium.com/@javed_baloch/farrokh-ghaffari-the-man-who-changed-the-face-of-iranian-cinema-c80aef7aee7