Jan 20, 2026 1:00am PT ‘Mortician’ Director Abdolreza Kahani Imagines Power Vacuum in Iran in Dark Comedy ‘Empty Heaven’ (EXCLUSIVE) News of a new production from the Iranian 2025 Edinburgh Fest winner comes as protests and repression intensify inside Iran By Callum McLennan Plus Icon Callum McLennan Latest Colombia’s Displaced Communities Take Center Stage in Juan Andrés Arango’s ‘Where the River Begins’ 2 months ago Puerto Rico’s Post-Hurricane María Reality Comes Into Focus in Raisa Bonnet’s Debut ‘Braided,’ Bowing in Primer Corte at Ventana Sur 2 months ago Quirino Awards Return to Tenerife With Record 273 Submissions, Unveil New Two-Pillar Structure (EXCLUSIVE) 2 months ago See All Credit: Pouya Razavi In recent weeks, as Iran’s supreme leader has unusually acknowledged that thousands of protesters were killed amid a nationwide crackdown, the Islamic Republic has appeared to turn inward once again, sealing off communications and retreating into repression. For Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, now in his fourth decade of rule, this posture reflects a long-standing logic: survival through isolation, control and force. Yet the scale of unrest and the regime’s own admission this weekend of mass violence have made questions about its durability feel newly immediate.
