‘No Bears’ Trailer: Acclaimed Director Jafar Panahi Returns With Another Politically-Charged Feature

Jafar Panahi doesn’t make documentaries. However, if you’re unfamiliar with his work and you see the trailer for his latest film, “No Bears,” you might be a little confused by that statement. You see, not only does Panahi star in the upcoming film, as he typically does in his movies, but his style makes everything he works on feel dangerously real and immediate. 

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Ahead of its premiere at the Venice Film Festival, the folks behind “No Bears” have released a trailer for Jafar Panahi’s latest feature. The film, once again, finds Panahi telling a story steeped in the trials and tribulations of trying to be an artist in Iran. Fiction and reality blur, as you see Panahi play the role of a filmmaker trying to shed light on the propaganda being spewed by the government, which puts him in the crosshairs. Joining Panahi in the cast are Naser Hashemi, Vahid Mobaseri, Bakhtiyar Panjei, Mina Kavani, and Reza Heydari.

Of course, you can’t talk about “No Bears” or any film by Panahi without mentioning the real-life situations the filmmaker finds himself in every time he releases a film. His features are not only often banned by the Iranian government, but Panahi himself is almost always at the center of serious legal trouble due to the truth found in his work. In fact, earlier this summer, he was forced to begin serving a six-year prison sentence that stems from a 2010 controversy. This is largely due to the Iranian government being unhappy with Panahi’s films showcasing the corruption he sees in his homeland. 

So, even though “No Bears” is a narrative feature, audiences should understand that there are very real consequences for the work Panahi does with each of his films. “No Bears” is set to debut at Venice before playing a variety of other festivals later this year. A full release schedule has yet to be announced.