Escaped Iranian director wraps up wide-open race for Cannes Palme d’Or

Director Mohammad Rasoulof holds up photographs of his lead actors upon arrival at the premiere of his Cannes competition entry "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" on May 24, 2024. © Scott A Garfitt, Invision, AP

The race for the Palme d’Or wound up with a bang on Friday with the screening of escaped Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”, adding a geopolitically charged red-carpet appearance to a 77th Cannes Film Festival that has delivered several strong contenders for the top prize but no outright favourite.  

Rasoulof’s Cannes premiere came just days after the director’s hair-raising escape from Iran, setting the stage for an unprecedented showdown with the Islamic Republic, which had pressured him to withdraw his film and then sentenced him to jail.