A taxi driver is driving through the vibrant streets of Tehran. Diverse passengers enter the taxi, each candidly expressing their views while being interviewed by the driver who is no other than the director Jafar Panahi himself. His camera placed on the dashboard of his car, transforming de facto his car into a mobile film studio, captures the spirit and contradictions of Iranian society through this comedic and dramatic drive. Banned from travelling and making films in 2010, Jafar Panahi has managed to astonish us with his beautiful trilogy composed of This is not a Film (2011), Closed Curtain (2013) and now Taxi Tehran, winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.
‘I’m a filmmaker. I can’t do anything else but make films. Cinema is my expression and the meaning of my life. Nothing can prevent me from making films.’ Jafar Panahi.
Want to see if Taxi Tehran is for you? Tune into our podcast to get the verdict from Jason Wood, our Artistic Director of Film, and The University of Salford’s Andy Willis (starts six minutes 19 seconds in)