Fest directors honor Minab children at Cannes film market

Multiple directors of international festivals and film companies have attended the Iran booth at the 2026 Cannes film market, signing the memorial book for the martyred children of Minab.

According to the Public Relations Department of  Iran's Farabi Cinema Foundation, the directors of 28 international festivals or foreign film institutions signed the memorial book for the martyred children of Minab at the Iran booth in the Marché du Film of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.

Among the signatories were the Sales & Operations Director of the Marché du Film of the Cannes Festival, the Programming Director of the Valladolid International Film Festival in Spain, the Director of the Bosphorus Film Festival in Turkey, the Director of the Macedonia Film Festival, among others.

Maud Amson, the Sales & Operations Director of the Marché du Film at the Cannes Festival, wrote in a note, "Wishing for calmer and more peaceful times in the near future for Iranians."

Enes Erbay, the Artistic Director of the Bosphorus Film Festival in Turkey, referring to the children of Minab, wrote: "May God place you all in heaven. Hoping to meet again in better days and places."

One of the senior directors of Turkey's ATV network also wrote an emotional text for the martyred children. "As a mother who has two sons, it is hard to say or write anything about this. This is beyond any understanding; it is a crime and a tragedy. The world must rise up and shout with all its might, but unfortunately, there is nothing we can do except pray. Know that they are beside Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and will be with God. We will not forget them," the director noted. 

Neel Esh Patel, an Indian-American producer and writer who is the director of a short film festival in the US, also came to the Iran booth in Cannes. After being given an explanation about the martyred students of Minab, he said, "I just learned about the Minab school incident. It is very, very sad. You know? The hair on my entire body has stood up. I express all my condolences and sympathy to all those who were victims of this incident."

Other messages from filmmakers and festival directors have also been written in the memorial book for the children of Minab at the Iran booth in Cannes 2026, wishing good days for Iranians, and wishing for peace, tranquility, and the continuation of Iranian cinema.

The Iran booth at the Cannes Film Festival's Marché du Film was set up by the Farabi Cinema Foundation.

On February 28, the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab, Hormozgan Province, became the site of a devastating massacre as the US and Israel initiated strikes against Iran.