Iranian director Jafar Panahi won the Palme d’Or at the 78th Cannes Film Festival on Saturday for It Was Just An Accident (Un Simple Accident), a tense revenge drama shot in secret.
The film follows a garage owner who kidnaps a one-legged man resembling the person he believes once tortured him in prison. The story confronts justice, memory, and the burden of vengeance.
Panahi, who had been banned from filmmaking in Iran for 15 years, dedicated the prize “to all Iranians,” saying: “Hoping that we will reach a day when no one will tell us what to wear or not wear, what to do or not do.” He added, “Win or not, I was going to go back either way. Don’t be afraid of challenges.”
Returning to the festival in person for the first time since 2003, Panahi said: “Every moment was thrilling.” Jury president Juliette Binoche called the film “a force that transforms darkness into forgiveness, hope and new life.”
The Grand Prix went to Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value. The Jury Prize was shared between Sirat by Oliver Laxe and Sound of Falling by Mascha Schilinski. Brazil’s The Secret Agent earned Best Actor for Wagner Moura and Best Director for Kleber Mendonça Filho. Nadia Melliti won Best Actress for The Little Sister. The Dardenne brothers received Best Screenplay for Young Mothers.
Panahi’s win is his third major European prize, joining the Golden Bear and Golden Lion, and only the second time an Iranian film has won the Palme d’Or.
