Saeed Khani, a film producer, discussed the harsh realities of Iranian cinema in an interview with Amir Abbas Sabagh. As a private sector producer, he reported his inability to produce independent films and mentioned that he has chosen Bahram Radan as a potential collaborator. Khani added that under the current conditions, he can no longer fully cover Radan's salary and is seeking financial assistance from Farabi.
The Cinema Crisis and Declining Audiences
Khani expressed concern over the sharp decline in cinema audiences and cited statistics as a reason for his worries. According to him, in 2024, cinemas had 35 million viewers, which decreased to 25 million in 2025, and it is predicted that this year it will drop to 12 to 13 million. These figures not only indicate a crisis in cinema but also reflect a change in audience preferences and their inclination towards online platforms.
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Changes in Salaries and Priorities
The director of the House of Film distribution institute also pointed to changes in actors' salaries, stating that the production crisis in cinema is very serious. He explained that concert-shows and online platforms have narrowed the field for cinema, causing even third-tier actors to receive salaries of 2 to 3 billion tomans. Meanwhile, first-tier actors receive a maximum of 4 to 5 billion tomans. These changes indicate a decline in the importance of cinema in the eyes of many actors who prefer to participate in reality shows and receive significant amounts.
Khani stated that currently, two to three prominent male actors receive salaries between 10 to 12 billion tomans, while this figure for female actors reaches 7 to 8 billion tomans. This situation has not only affected the actors but has also harmed the entire cinema ecosystem.
He concluded by noting that only 2 to 3 million loyal cinema audiences have kept it alive, emphasizing that the cinema guilds must distance themselves from the atmosphere of the 60s and 70s and modernize. Khani stressed the need to negotiate with platforms to reduce production costs and said, "We must find ways to lower production costs by any means possible." He mentioned that the online release of the film 'Woman and Child' generated 40 billion tomans in sales, but only 28 billion tomans reached the producers, which is not a significant amount compared to production costs.
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