The selection of a documentary instead of a feature film to represent Iran at the Oscars has stirred negative reactions in some Iranian cultural circles, with the choice of “Finding Farideh” being likened to a coup.
Every year, the Farabi Cinema Foundation, which is affiliated to the Culture Ministry, forms a committee of eight to select the country’s nominee for the Academy Awards. Iran has nominated 25 films for the foreign film Oscar and walked off with the statuette twice — with “A Separation” in 2012 and “The Salesman” in 2017.
