Iranian government allows actresses to act without veils

Iranian President Mohammad Khatamy issued a decree prohibiting Iranian film directors from shooting their films abroad in order to avoid cultural problems encoutered when Iranian films were shot abroad.

Khatamy asked Iranian film director Seif El Din Daoud to supervise cinema affairs, which revived interest in the cinema industry and lured many cinema directors out of isolation.

For the first time since the production of the film "Iranian Revolution," censors allowed a film to be shot in which actresses will appear without veils. Many directors were against the idea of actresses acting with the veil and considered the ban imposed on the actresses a threat to the cinema industry.

The first new film to witness the appearance of unveiled actresses will be directed by Seif El Din Daoud with the title "Al Wahid Alazi Baka Hayan" ("The Only Survivor"). It deals with Israeli violations against Palestinians. The film is part of a government plan to support young talent in the Iranian cinema industry.

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