The Iranian director boycotting this weekend's Oscars over Donald Trump's travel ban will address a London screening of his nominated film hours before the ceremony kicks off in Los Angeles.

Asghar Farhadi, who won an Academy Award in 2012, has said he will not attend the awards show even if he is granted permission to enter the country following the ban on people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan and actors Keira Knightley, Dominic West, and Lily Cole have organised a free screening of Farhadi's The Salesman in Trafalgar Square on Sunday in a bid to show solidarity with the filmmaker's boycott.

The director will not be present at the premiere in London but said he would be there "in spirit" adding: "Thank you all from the bottom of my heart."

A video message from him will be played ahead of the screening while Mr Khan, Cole and director Mike Leigh will all address attendees.

The Salesman is up for best foreign language film at the star-studded ceremony in California.

Knightley said the event would be a "celebration of our diversity" at a time when "largely racist and nationalistic rhetoric is becoming political policy".

Sunday's Oscars ceremony is expected to be dominated by political speeches about President Trump and his controversial travel ban, while comedian Jimmy Kimmel, who will host the show, has said the US president will be a target for jibes.

Musical La La Land could make history at the 89th Academy Awards, taking place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

The glittering love letter to Los Angeles has been nominated for 14 prizes, tying the record set by All About Eve and Titanic, and could become the most decorated film of all time.

It is favourite to strike gold in the best picture and best director categories while Emma Stone is expected to claim the best actress award at 1/6 according to bookies' Ladbrokes.

Natalie Portman, who is nominated for best actress for her role in Jackie, has announced she will miss the ceremony because she is heavily pregnant.

Stone's co-star Ryan Gosling looks to miss out on the best actor gong with Casey Affleck the bookies' favourite for his role in Manchester By The Sea at 4/6.

In the best supporting actress and actor categories, Viola Davis is expected to be awarded for her performance in Fences and Moonlight's Mahershala Ali is favourite beat Brit Dev Patel.

:: The free screening of The Salesman will begin at 3pm in Trafalgar Square.</s>The Iranian director boycotting this weekend’s Oscars over Donald Trump’s travel ban will address a London screening of his nominated film hours before the ceremony kicks off in Los Angeles.

Asghar Farhadi, who won an Academy Award in 2012, has said he will not attend the ceremony even if he is granted permission to enter the country following the ban on people from seven Muslim-majority countries entering the United States.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan and actors Keira Knightley, Dominic West and Lily Cole have organised a free screening of Farhadi’s The Salesman in Trafalgar Square on Sunday in a bid to show solidarity with the filmmaker’s boycott.

The director will not be present at the premiere in London but said he would be there “in spirit”, adding: “Thank-you all from the bottom of my heart.”

A video message from him will be played ahead of the screening while the mayor, Lily and director Mike Leigh will address attendees.

The Salesman is up for best foreign language film at the star-studded ceremony in California.

Keira said the event would be a “celebration of our diversity” at a time when “largely racist and nationalistic rhetoric is becoming political policy”.

Sunday’s Oscars ceremony is expected to be dominated by political speeches about Trump and his controversial travel ban, while comedian Jimmy Kimmel, who will host the show, has said the US president will be a target for jibes.

Musical La La Land could make history at the 89th Academy Awards, taking place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

The glittering love letter to Los Angeles has been nominated for 14 prizes, tying the record set by All About Eve and Titanic, and could become the most decorated film of all time.

It is favourite to strike gold in the best picture and best director categories, while Emma Stone is expected to claim the best actress award at 1/6, according to bookies’ Ladbrokes.

However, Emma’s co-star Ryan Gosling looks set to miss out on the best actor gong with Casey Affleck the bookies’ favourite for his role in Manchester By The Sea at 4/6.

In the best supporting actress and actor categories, Viola Davis is expected to be awarded for her performance in Fences and Moonlight’s Mahershala Ali is favourite beat Brit Dev Patel.

The free screening of The Salesman will begin at 3pm in Trafalgar Square.</s>Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has won the best foreign language Oscar in Los Angeles, for a second time, for domestic drama The Salesman. Farhadi, 44, did not attend the ceremony because he said that the conditions that would be attached to a potential entry visa were unacceptable.

The director had originally planned to travel to Hollywood for the prize-giving to highlight “the unjust circumstances that have arisen for the immigrants and travellers of several countries to the United States”.

The surge in votes for his film was thought by some to be a registration by Oscar voters of a protest against Donald Trump’s travel ban, which aimed to prevent people coming to the US from seven Muslim-majority countries. On Sunday evening in London, a free screening of The Salesman was introduced by London mayor Sadiq Khan.

Solidarity is key to resisting Trump, says Oscar-nominated Iranian director Read more

Until the ramifications of the ban for film-makers such as Farhadi became clear, Germany’s Toni Erdmann had been the strong favourite to take the prize. The other nominees were Land of Mine (Denmark), Tanna (Australia) and A Man Called Ove (Sweden).

The Salesman premiered at Cannes last May, where it won best actor for Shahab Hosseini and best screenplay for Farhadi – despite moderate notices from critics. The film follows a couple in Tehran involved in an amateur dramatic production of Arthur Miller’s The Salesman, who are forced to move apartments following an earthquake. But the flat into which they move has an unhappy history, compounded by an unwelcome intruder.

Farhadi won Iran’s first Oscar for his film A Separation in 2012. This second award puts him in an elite category of double-winners in the category, including Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman.

Iran’s first person in space, Anousheh Ansari, read out a statement from Farhadi at the podium: “ My absence is out of respect for the people of my country, and those of the other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the US.”</s>The Salesman, a film by Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, won the Oscar for the best foreign-language picture at the Academy Awards ceremony.

Farhadi refused to attend the February 26 Oscars in protest of U.S. President Donald Trump's now-suspended executive order temporarily banning visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, from entering the United States.

In a statement read on his behalf, Farhadi said he was boycotting the ceremony "out of respect for the people of my country and those of the other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S."

"Dividing the world into 'us' and 'our enemies' categories creates fear, a deceitful justification for aggression and war," the statement said.

Trump's immigration crackdown was halted by a U.S. federal judge. He has said his team is writing a new order to be revealed soon.

The Salesman is drama about a married couple's struggles to cope in Tehran after the wife is attacked in her apartment.

Farhadi won the Oscar for the best foreign language film in 2012 for A Separation.

Meanwhile, Syrian war documentary The White Helmets won the Oscar for the best short documentary.

The film produced by Netflix is about rescue workers, some who have lost their lives, who struggle to save Syrians affected by the six-year civil war.

Based on reporting by AP, dpa, Reuters, and AFP</s>Asghar Farhadi’s actions predicted that the 2017 Oscars would turn into the President Donald Trump bashing show and he was correct.

Mr. Trump’s ears must be ringing tonight. Many celebrities slammed the president at the 2017 Academy Awards held at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday in Hollywood, California.

However, it was a speech given on behalf of Iranian director Asghar Farhadi that is making headlines. Farhadi was absent from the 2017 Academy Awards because he decided to boycott the event.

The talented filmmaker’s The Salesman won Best Foreign Language Film, but he stayed in his country, and so did the stars of the movie.

He took that decision because of Trump’s attempts to ban travelers and refugees from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering America.

While the executive order is tied up in the courts, Farhadi refused to change his mind in solidarity with those affected.

Farhadi was asked to be represented by Anousheh Ansari and Firouz Naderi, two Iranian-Americans, both of whom are experts in the field of space exploration.

Naderi, a former director at NASA, read from a statement written by Farhadi: “It’s a great honor to be receiving this valuable award for the second time. I would like to thank the members of the Academy, my crew in Iran,” and others involved in the film, The Salesman.”

Naderi continued: “I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight. My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations whom have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S. Dividing the world into the ‘us’ and ‘our enemies’ categories creates fear. A deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression. Filmmakers can turn their cameras to capture shared human qualities and break stereotypes of various nationalities and religions. They create empathy between us and others. An empathy which we need today more than ever. Thank you on behalf of Mr. Farhadi.”

The good news is that Trump has opted not to watch the Oscars, otherwise he would have been slamming celebrities on Twitter.</s>LOS ANGELES: Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has chosen an Iranian-American female engineer and a former NASA scientist to represent his film "The Salesman" at Sunday's Oscar ceremony, which he is boycotting in protest over U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration.

Farhadi, who has given no interviews since Trump in January banned travel from seven majority Muslim nations, planned to address a rally in Beverly Hills on Friday via video from Tehran, rally organizers said.

The rally, organised by the United Talent Agency, which represents Farhadi in Hollywood, is being held instead of the agency's traditional pre-Oscar party. It will protest policies of exclusion and division and speakers will include actors Jodie Foster, Michael J. Fox and Keegan-Michael Key.

"The Salesman," a family drama set in Tehran, is one of the front runners to take home the Oscar for foreign language film on Sunday. If it wins, it would mark Farhadi and Iran's second Oscar after "A Separation" won in 2012.

Farhadi and the film's lead actress, Taraneh Alidoosti, both said last month they would not travel to Los Angeles to represent the film because of Trump's ban, even if they were exempted. The ban was later overturned by U.S. courts but the administration is working on a new executive travel order.

In a statement to Hollywood trade publication Variety on Friday, Farhadi's publicist said that engineer Anousheh Ansari, who was the first female space tourist, and Firouz Naderi, a former director of NASA's Solar System Exploration program, would take Farhadi's place at the Oscars and represent him on stage should the film win.

Ansari moved to the United States from Iran in 1984 as a teenager and made headlines as the first Iranian and first Muslim woman in space in 2006.

Naderi left Iran for the United States in 1964 and worked for some 30 years in positions with the U.S. space agency.</s>LOS ANGELES (AP) — A political context larger than that of films themselves swept Iran’s “The Salesman” into the limelight and effectively solidified its win in the best foreign-language category at the Oscars on Sunday.

Iranian astronaut Anousheh Ansari accepted the award on behalf of director Asghar Farhadi, who was absent from the ceremony in protest of Donald Trump’s travel ban.

“I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight,” Ansari read in a statement. “My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.”

Firouz Naderi, a former NASA director, and an Iranian, stood beside Ansari as she read Farhadi’s words.

It’s the second Oscar for director Farhadi, and Iran, who previously won in the same category for “A Separation” in 2012, but the context surrounding this win is stunningly different.

Farhadi’s film, about a couple performing Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman,” was barely even in the conversation a few months ago, overshadowed by Maren Ade’s popular German comedy “Toni Erdmann,” but became a rallying cry for immigrant rights after President Donald Trump’s seven country travel ban.

The ban not only led to Farhadi announcing that he would not attend the awards in protest of the ban, targeted toward predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran, but also to an unprecedented show of solidary between the six nominated directors in the foreign language category. Two days before the Oscars, the six directors issued a joint statement decrying the climate of “fanaticism” in the United States. They said that no matter who won, the award would be dedicated to people working to foster “unity and understanding.”

“Dividing the world into ‘us’ and ‘enemies’ categories creates fear,” Ansari continued in Farhadi’s statement, which concluded with a passionate defense of the power of film to create empathy “between us and others, an empathy that we need today.”

Backstage, Naderi said that Farhadi could have chosen any number of prominent Iranians to represent him at the Oscars, but that he chose two scientists who focus on space because, “if you go away from the earth and look back at the earth you don’t see the borders and the lines.”

“The Salesman” won over the early favorite, “Toni Erdmann,” which in already in the early stages of development for an English language remake starring Jack Nicholson and Kristen Wii, Sweden’s “A Man Called Ove,” Denmark’s “Land of Mine,” and Australia’s “Tanna.”</s>Director Asghar Farhadi won the Academy Award for foreign-language film Sunday night for “The Salesman,” his psychological tale about a young couple weathering the effects of a violent assault. But Farhadi wasn’t present to accept the Oscar.

The director, who hails from Iran, boycotted the ceremony in protest of the travel ban implemented by President Trump in late January targeting travelers from seven countries, including Iran.

Anousheh Ansari, the first Iranian in space, accepted the award for Farhadi and read a short statement from the director.

“My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of six other nations whom have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.,” Farhadi’s statement said.

The audience inside the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood greeted the statement with enthusiastic applause.

“Filmmakers can turn their cameras to capture shared human qualities and break stereotypes of various nationalities and religions,” Ansari continued. “They create empathy between us and others. An empathy which we need today more than ever.”

In most years, the foreign-language film category at the Oscars can be a sleepy one — Hollywood’s obligatory nod to the large body of cinematic work produced globally. The most notable foreign-language Oscar moments in recent years include Roberto Benigni’s dramatic traipse to the stage after winning the award for “Life Is Beautiful,” and Pedro Almodóvar’s deliriously incomprehensible acceptance speech for “All About My Mother” in 2000.

But this year, the category became a fraught locus of politics after the implementation of Trump’s travel ban. Farhadi announced that he would not attend the awards ceremony — even if he were granted an exemption from the ban.

In a statement, he condemned “the unjust conditions forced upon some of my compatriots and the citizens of the other six countries trying to legally enter the United States of America.”

On Friday, the five directors nominated in the foreign-language film category — Denmark’s Martin Zandvliet (“Land of Mine”), Sweden’s Hannes Holm (“A Man Called Ove”), Germany’s Maren Ade (“Toni Erdmann”) and Australia’s Martin Butler and Bentley Dean (“Tanna”) — issued a joint statement that expressed their “unanimous and emphatic disapproval of the climate of fanaticism and nationalism we see today in the U.S.” and dedicated the award to all the “people, artists, journalists and activists who are working to foster unity and understanding.”

Regardless of who wins the Academy Award for best foreign-language film, “we refuse to think in terms of borders,” the statement said. “We believe there is no best country, best gender, best religion or best color.”

Though the travel ban was later halted by a federal judge, Farhadi nonetheless stood by his decision to boycott the ceremony. He sent two prominent Iranian Americans in his place: Ansari and Firouz Naderi, a former NASA director for solar system exploration.

He made a remote video appearance in London via video link just hours before the Oscars ceremony at an outdoor screening of “The Salesman,” organized by London Mayor Sadiq Khan and filmmaker Mike Leigh. The screening, a gesture of solidarity with the Iranian director, drew 10,000 people.

In the message delivered to the crowd, Farhadi said: “I hope this movement will continue and spread, for it has within itself the power to stand up to fascism, be victorious in the face of extremism and say no to oppressive political powers everywhere.”

Backstage at the Oscars on Sunday, Naderi was asked why he thought Farhadi had chosen Ansari and him to accept the Oscar.

"She's an astronaut. I work for NASA. If you go away from the Earth and look back, you don’t see any of the borders,” he said, adding later: “I think he chose the both of us to say 'come together.' "

Contributing to this report was Times staff writer Tre’vell Anderson.

Sign up for our weekly Essential Arts & Culture newsletter »</s>The award comes in the wake of a show of solidarity among all of the nominated directors in this year's category.

In a decisive choice to cap a tumultuous awards season among foreign films, Asghar Farhadi and “The Salesman” won for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards on Sunday night in Hollywood, California.

The award has garnered increased attention in recent weeks, with increased restrictions on international travel to the United States. Nominee Asghar Farhadi announced at the end of January that he would not be attending the ceremony. In a show of solidarity, the directors of all five nominated films released a joint statement, condemning a global uptick in nationalist ideals and reaffirming cinema as a safe place to express common humanity.

“Dividing the world into the ‘us and our enemies’ categories creates fear, a deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression,” Farhadi said via a prepared statement.

Word came earlier this morning that, had Farhadi and “The Salesman” won, Iranian-Americans Anousheh Ansari and Firouz Naderi were prepared to accept the award on his behalf.

Other nominees in this year’s category included Maren Ade’s “Toni Erdmann,” Martin Butler and Bentley Dean’s “Tanna,” Martin Zandvliet’s “Land of Mine” and Hannes Holm’s “A Man Called Ove.”

Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.</s>Iranians on Monday cheered the choice of one of their own for the best foreign film Oscar, lauding director Asghar Farhadi’s boycott of the Hollywood ceremony for his film The Salesman as an act of defiance against the Trump administration. Farhadi refused to attend the Academy Awards, announcing after the temporary U.S. travel ban was initially imposed last month for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries that he would not attend the ceremony, even if an exception was made for him. Iran was one of the seven countries affected by the measure, which has since been blocked from being carried out by a federal court ruling.

The Salesman -about a couple performing Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and their attempts to find peace and justice after the wife is attacked at their Tehran apartment- had become a rallying cry for immigrant rights after the travel ban. The six nominated directors in the foreign language category had put out a joint statement ahead of the award decrying what they called the climate of “fanaticism” in the United States and dedicating the award to the promotion of “unity and understanding” regardless of who won.

Film critic Esmaeil Mihandoost, who wrote a book about Farhadi, told The Associated Press that thanks to the boycott, the film director has now “more influence on public opinion than a politician.” “It created an exceptional opportunity for criticism” of Trump’s policy, he added. The award was the second Oscar for Farhadi, after his film A Separation won in the same category for 2012. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said he saw the prize as taking a stance against Trump’s executive order. “Proud of Cast and Crew of The Salesman for Oscar and stance against (hash)MuslimBan. Iranians have represented culture and civilization for millennia,” he tweeted in English.

Vice President Ishaq Jahangiri praised Farhadi both for the award and for boycotting the ceremony, calling it a “priceless action.” State radio and television briefly reported on Farhadi’s Oscar, while Tehran film daily Banifilm ran an op-ed saying that Trump had “probably never imagined what contribution the travel ban would have for Farhadi’s film.” The trade paper said the executive order had likely propelled The Salesman to victory.

Trump’s victory has prompted concern among many in Iran, particularly in the wake of a 2015 nuclear deal with the U.S. and other world powers that led to the lifting of crippling economic sanctions. The Trump administration earlier this month said it was putting Iran “on notice” after it test-fired a ballistic missile. Many Iranians learned of the Oscar win from social media.

“I am proud of this,” said Mahbod Shirvani, a 19-year-old music student said outside the campus of Tehran University. “It shattered the U.S president’s stance on Muslim nations. It showed that American people and artists are against Trump’s policies.” Davood Kazemi, 21, who studies painting, said the “award showed Trump cannot stop international figures and he cannot thwart artists’ solidarity that has formed, regardless of race, nationality and religion.”

Also Read: Oscar 2017 shocker: Moonlight vs La La Land, what explains the surprise win?

Iranian news websites published cartoonist Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour’s sketch depicting Farhadi playing chess and using a small Oscar statue to knock out an unseen’s opponent’s last chess piece, a figure resembling Trump.In a statement read out at the Oscars ceremony on his behalf by Anousheh Ansari, an Iranian-American astronaut, Farhadi said the empathy filmmakers can foster is needed today more than ever. Ansari was joined onstage by another accomplished Iranian-American, Firouz Naderi, a former NASA director.

“I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight,” Farhadi’s statement read. “My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.””Dividing the world into the `us’ and `our enemies’ categories creates fear,” it said.
The Salesman directed by Asghar Farhadi won Best Foreign Language Film. Farhadi and other film crew did not attend the ceremony in protest of Donald Trump's visa ban. First Iranian in space Anousheh Ansari and scienist Firouz Naderi attended in place of Farhadi.