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Viewing cable 09BAKU172, IRANIAN FILM DIRECTOR ON IRANIAN ROCK, DRUGS, AND

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
09BAKU172 2009-03-04 12:05 2011-06-26 00:00 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy Baku
Appears in these articles:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/04/17/112290/state-department-cables-reveal.html
VZCZCXRO9123
RR RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHKUK
DE RUEHKB #0172/01 0631205
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 041205Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAKU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0860
INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFISS/CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 000172 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/03/2019 
TAGS: PREL PHUM SCUL SNAR AJ IR
SUBJECT: IRANIAN FILM DIRECTOR ON IRANIAN ROCK, DRUGS, AND 
MOVIE SCENE 
 
Classified By: POLECON COUNSELOR ROB GARVERICK, REASON 1.5 (B and D) 
 
Summary 
-------- 
 
1.  (C) An Iranian film Director told Iran watcher that 
Iranian society is becoming more liberal even as the regime 
becomes more "backward."  He described a widespread youth 
culture, embracing all regions and classes, in which 
underground rap and rock music bands are proliferating and 
"classic rock" connoisseurship growing.  He also described 
widespread narcotics use, noting that recreational drugs are 
regarded as "cool" by many, while harder drugs offer escapism 
to many without other outlets.  Despite the breadth of this 
problem, he doubted that the Iranian regime is reay to allow 
meaningful outside access, or otherwise engage the West in 
cooperative anti-narcotics activities.  While noting that 
films can make good domestic profits, the Director noted many 
cumbersome aspects in producing and obtaining permission to 
release Iranian films, with some movies blocked from 
distribution after completion, or even withdrawn after 
release.  End Summary. 
 
Meeting with Iranian Movie Director 
------------------------------------ 
 
2.  (C) On February 28 Baku Iran Watcher met with XXXXXXXXXXXX (protect). 
 Although not internationally famous, the XXXXXXXXXXXX has produced seven feature films and a 
Persian-language Google produced several "hits."  XXXXXXXXXXXX 
has an apartment in Baku, but primarily stays in Teheran.  He 
has a brother living in Vienna, Virginia and agreed to meet 
with Iran watcher just prior to embarking on his first trip 
to the United States. 
 
"Iranians Moving Forward; Regime Moving Backward" 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
3.  (C) According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, "80-90 percent of the 
Iranian people have no problem with America;" compared to 
Russia, "we love you."  While he said that the Iranian people 
have a "good feeling" about President Obama, he stressed that 
most people are focusing on their families and "how to 
survive" rather than U.S. or international politics.  He 
characterized Iran as a society where "the people keep moving 
forward while the government is moving backward" on social 
liberalism and cosmopolitanism, and desire for international 
integration. 
 
Underground Discos and Rock Bands 
--------------------------------- 
 
4.  (C) He said that urban young people mix with ease in 
parties and get-togethers behind closed doors and said there 
is a proliferation of "artificial discos" operating out of 
private homes or specially rented 
non-descript-from-the-outside apartments.  Bribes and hired 
guards are deployed as necessary, he added.  Alcohol and 
narcotics are easy to obtain, and consumption of the latter 
is often regarded as "cool" among youth.  He described most 
Iranian youth and young adults as "aimless and hopeless," in 
terms of their personal lives.  He decried the lack of 
commonly-available sports facilities and programs and other 
constructive activities that might provide alternatives. 
 
5.  (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX said that he is currently working on a 
film about underground rock music bands in Iran, which he 
claimed are spreading in popularity, name recognition, and 
numbers.  According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, young Iranians avidly keep 
up with the latest rock and rap music trends and are 
especially like heavy metal for its symbolic protest content. 
 Young people also compete in assembling collections of 
classic rock, and some have formed unofficial fan clubs for 
old bands such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin.  He said that 
all this music is easy to obtain and download, and denied 
that Rock or Rap is only popular among pampered or urban 
youth: "I guarantee you that many youth and young adults in 
villages are also listening to it," he said. 
 
Hollywood Films, "Persepolis" Popular 
------------------------------------- 
 
6.  (C) Despite some widely felt outrage over the film "300" 
and its hugely distorted picture of ancient Iran, he said 
that Hollywood films (including classics) remain very 
popular.  Although most such films cannot be shown in movie 
houses (or are censored if they are), he noted that DVDs for 
home watching are easy and cheap to get.  He said that he 
himself has an "archive" of more than 300 American films.  He 
added that the Marjane Satrapi animated film "Persepolis," 
which has been sharply condemned by the regime as "anti-Iran 
and anti-Islam," is easy to find and "very popular." 
"Anything the regime condemns immediately becomes desired and 
popular," he noted. 
 
Narcotics 
--------- 
 
7.  (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX said that he has made a documentary about 
drug addiction in Iran, but has not yet obtained permission 
for its release.  Siamizadeh estimated that over fifty 
percent of adult Iranians are at least "recreational" drug 
users (including opium and hashish); about twenty percent are 
seriously addicted, he claimed.  As an example, he cited a 
restaurant owned by his family in Teheran with eight outside 
employees.  All are regular narcotics users, and one is a 
heroin addict, he said.  Asked if combating narcotics/drug 
addiction might be an area where the West could offer more 
cooperation with Iran, XXXXXXXXXXXX opined that the Iranian 
government would resist any real substantial cooperation: 
"Some of them are involved in the (very lucrative) business, 
while others don't want foreigners to see how bad the 
situation is." 
 
Movie Producing in Iran 
----------------------- 
 
8.  (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX is a graduate of the Art and Cinema 
University, which he said accepts thirty students a year and 
is the primary source of Iranian film, TV, and theater 
directors and key production staff.  He said that a separate 
"public broadcasting" school trains students to be government 
news readers and "visual propagandists," subsequently 
employing most of them at the state TV network. 
 
9.  (C) He described the process of producing a film as 
cumbersome.  After private financial backers are found, "five 
or six" different committees must approve scripts and the 
finished project before it can be released.  He claimed that 
not infrequently finished or near-finished films are banned 
from public distribution, causing the loss of all the 
investment.  Sometimes even released films are withdrawn. 
This threat promotes significant self-censorship by film 
producers and backers, he said.  On the other hand, he said, 
if a film is released, general domestic demand is such that 
good profits can be earned. 
 
10.  (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX is planning visits to Washington, New York 
and Los Angeles during his upcoming three week visit to the 
USA.  He expressed modest interest in meeting some American 
filmmakers or visiting film facilities, but said that so far 
he had no arrangements to do so.  He is also interested in 
finding out if there are any commercially viable outlets 
and/or financial support for Iranian films that might not 
receive permission for release in Iran.  He is currently 
developing a scenario about a culturally-torn German-Iranian 
woman who after returning to Iran decides at the end to 
embrace her German vice her Iranian heritage. 
 
DERSE