The closing ceremony of International Shams Tabrizi Congress attended by a large number of cultural figures and personalities from the cinema industry was held in Shams Mausoleum in Khoy, West Azarbaijan province.
Participants in the congress included famous men of culture and artists such as Hojjatollah Ayyoubi, Ahmad Jalali, Gholamhossein Mokhtabad, Parviz Parastouei, Roya Teimourian, Masoud Rayegan, Mazyar Miri, Mahtab Keramati, Ali Nassirian, Davoud Rashidi, Fatemeh Goudarzi, Sirous Alvand, Hanieh Tavvasoli, Hassan Pourshirazi, Hamid Jebeli, Ali Dehkordi and Shahram Nazeri, reported ISNA on Friday.
Speaking at the gathering, Nassirian, a veteran theater, cinema and television actor said that people usually pay attention to their materialistic needs and less attention to cultural and literarary values. He described Shams Tabrizi as one of the most important figures of all eras in the past 1,000 years.
Another actor, Davoud Rashidi, noted that like Shams, Molana Jalaleddin (Rumi) is also an Iranian. “No other country can claim Molana as being a national of their country since Molana’s poems are in Persian and he is originally from Iran,“ he said.
A cinema director, Sirous Alvand, recited a poem from Molana and said that Shams is a Persian mystic who does not belong to the earthly world, but to the spiritual world.
Meanwhile, vice president and head of Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization revealed that Shams Studies Foundation will be established in Tabriz in the near future.
Addressing the International Congress on 800th Birth Anniversary of Molana and Festival on Commemoration of Shams Tabrizi in Islamic Azad University, Tabriz Branch, Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaei said that Shams Foundation will be established soon with the support of intellectuals.
Noted Iranian vocalist, Shahram Nazeri, performed in the closing ceremony of the International Congress for Commemoration of Shams Tabrizi held in Khoy.
He was presented the golden key to Shams Workshop and special emblem of Shams Tabrizi and a plaque of honor by Iranian Cinema House.

Isfahani children chose three of their favorite plays at the Isfahan Children and Young Adults Theater Festival which ended on late Thursday in Isfahan province.
On the first day of the event, an opinion poll was conducted by children and young adults based on which a play from Arak titled ’Star and a Mustachioed Wizard’ directed by Reza Mirzaei ranked first. The second and third places went to ’Scarecrow’s Wish’ directed by Ramin Kohan and ’Butterfly and Palace of Leaves’ by Reza Abdolalizadeh respectively, both from Tehran, reportes ISNA.
Plays titled ’Mash Mash Qoli-Khan’ by Nasser Avijeh from Tehran, ’King of Tales’ by Ahmad Soleiman from Qom and ’Sara and the Magic Bean’ by Roshanak Roshan from Tehran where among the plays selected by the children on the last day of the festival. The opinion poll included all works featured in the competition.

Qeisar Aminpour

The noted Iranian poet Qeisar Aminpour was buried at his birthplace on Gotvand in north Khuzestan province amidst grief of tens of thousands of his fans.
According to IRNA, before the burial ceremony, messages from the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were read out. Several poets also recited their poems in mourning for Aminpour.
Aminpour died at the age of 48 on Tuesday in Tehran’s Dey Hospital following a heart failure.
He received his PhD in Persian language and literature from Tehran University.
A memorial ceremony will also be held for Aminpour in India on Wednesday.

Orhan Pamuk

Renowned Turkish novelist has said that Persian literature has greatly influenced modern Turkish poetry.
In an interview with MNA, Orhan Pamuk, the winner of 2006 Nobel Prize for literature, further said, “I have read most of the works of great Iranian poets, including Molana Jalaleddin (Rumi), Sa’di, Hafez and Attar Neishabouri.“
Pamuk believes that literature gives one a proper recognition of others. It helps one feel the meaning of life and gain pleasure from reading.
“European literature dominated the world in the 20th century. However, today’s literature is influenced by many Asian authors, particularly Indians, Iranians and the Chinese. Literature is no longer limited to the West,“ he said.
The writer places special focus on classical and modern Persian literature. His famous novel ’My Name Is Red’, published in 2000, is redolent with discussion and fascination with creative arts, such as literature and painting.
The book takes the reader into the strange and beautiful world of Islamic and Iranian art. Paintings by Iranian artists in Tabriz are considered a source of pride by the author, who, in his book, repeatedly appreciates works by Kamaleddin Behzad.
Pamuk is the author of six novels and the recipient of major Turkish and international literary awards. He is also a professor of comparative literature at Columbia University.

Managing director of Tehran Municipality Cultural Spaces Development Company said that Azadi Cinema will open according to schedule on February 11, 2008.
Ali Akbar Tashakori-Nia told ISNA that construction of Azadi Cinema has until now encountered no special problem and all purchases, including the import of equipment, are proceeding normally.
Commenting on the construction of another cinema hall in the west of Tehran, Tashakori-Nia pointed out that ’Zendegi’ (life) movie theater located in Abouzar Avenue, Ayatollah Kashani Boulevard which has five auditoriums and seating capacity for 1,300 people, is in its final stages and will be ready for inauguration as per schedule.
Referring to a cinema complex under construction in Mellat Park, he noted that given its vast area, this cinema complex can be used for holding festivals.
All the cinema halls are to be constructed and equipped with Dolby sound system as approved by foreign authorized companies.

A 40-meter painting by Iranian painter and critic, Sohrab Hadi, scheduled to be completed by late December, will be displayed for sale at an exhibition in Morocco early 2008.
Speaking to MNA, Hadi further said that the work, titled ’Eternal, Primordial, Not Eternal, Not Primordial’, is made up of five pieces, each comprising five canvases.
Hadi, who will display his work for the first time at the event, further stated that he would hold an exhibition in Iran if the painting is not sold in Morocco.

Chinese manufacturers have managed to turn the ’Year of Molana’, designated by UNESCO to commemorate the eighth birth centenary of the renowned Iranian poet and mystic Molana Jalaleddin Rumi, into an economic windfall by producing several souvenirs bearing images of the poet.
Plates, prayer beads, statuettes, and even T-shirts depicting Molana, have become the best-selling souvenirs in Konya, Turkey, reported ISNA quoting the Turkish daily ’Today’s Zaman ’.
China, which came in for much criticism for manufacturing toys containing lead, has now found a new economic avenue in the production of toys and souvenirs commemorating Molana.
Great public enthusiasm for theses souvenir items has lead to a significant rise in the sales of the products.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) will present prizes to selected films from the ongoing 37th Roshd Film Festival.
Announcing this, deputy head of Education Ministry’s Communications and Educational Information Department, Hamid Reza Kaffash said that the current edition of the festival will provide ISESCO members with educational programs based on Qur’anic teachings.
He added that the event aims to produce and screen educational films at the international level, reported IRNA quoting Public Relations Office of Research and Educational Planning Organization as saying.
The 37th Roshd Film Festival will run until November 9 and top films will later be screened in other provinces as well.

Hollywood writers said they would strike for the first time in nearly 20 years but left open the door for last-minute talks to avert a crippling walkout.
Writers Guild of America (WGA) President Patric Verrone drew loud cheers when he announced in closed-door session Thursday night that the union could strike as early as Sunday, several writers told The Associated Press.
However, guild officials said privately the strike would most likely start on Monday.
The WGA board was to meet Friday morning to approve the strike and set a time for the first picket lines. A strike captains’ meeting was set for Saturday morning.
Union leaders said they would delay the action if producers showed movement in contract negotiations especially on the key issue of paying writers when TV episodes are sold or streamed over the Internet.
“It’s going to have to be a good deal, but we would much rather negotiate than go on strike,“ WGA chief negotiator John Bowman said.
The first casualty of the strike will likely be late-night talk shows, which are dependent on current events to fuel monologues and other entertainment.
The strike will not immediately impact film or prime-time TV production. Most studios have stockpiled dozens of movie scripts, and TV shows have enough scripts or completed shows in hand to last until early next year.
About 3,000 of the union’s 12,000 members attended Thursday’s meeting. Writers said the line of questioning inside the meeting wasn’t whether the group was going to strike, but how the job action would be carried out.
Studios argue that it is too early to know how much money they can make from offering entertainment on the Internet, cellphones, iPods and other devices.
Producers are uncertain whether consumers prefer a pay-per-view model over an advertising-supported system. They want the economic flexibility to experiment as consumer habits change in reaction to technology.