How to Make a Movie in Iran and Not Get Caught: Inside The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Before the first image is even shown, the words “This film was made in secret” appear on a black screen. The film is Germany’s submission for foreign-language film at this year’s Oscars, Mohammad Rasoulof’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig. Rasoulof is not German, and the film contains not a single word of German dialogue. But Germany is currently Rasoulof’s home after escaping Iran as a political refugee facing a possible eight-year prison sentence. Rasoulof recently received Best…