Books in six categories will compete at the first edition of the Avini Literary Awards which will be held on the death anniversary of Martyred Iranian photographer and filmmaker Morteza Avini on April 9, 2012, the secretary of the event Behruz Esbati mentioned in a press conference on Saturday.
Known as the “master of martyred writers”, Morteza Avini was martyred by a landmine in 1993 during his last trip to the former Iran-Iraq war zone in southwestern Iran while making a documentary about soldiers who were still listed as missing in action.
Documented literature, poetry, fiction, art books, criticism and researches, soft wars are the six categories in which the books will compete, he said.
Esbati also called “Islamic Awakening” one of the important themes of the event, saying that several poetry collections has been published on this theme in Iran.
Books released for the first time since March 22, 2010 will compete at this edition of the event, which is to be held biennially, he added.
The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mostazafan Foundation and Revayat-e Fat’h Institute, and Tehran’s Art Bureau are the sponsors of the event, he said.
“This year, about 150 books written on Islamic resistance in Arabic and English will be judged on the sidelines of the festival,” he said.
Iran also holds the annual Avini Awards for documentary films that have been made by the Documentary and Experimental Film Center (DEFC) to commemorate the martyr Morteza Avini.
Avini directed the 10-part series “A City in the Sky”, “With Kheibar Battalion”, “Spell or Miracle” and several other films. He published many essays and articles, all of which are held in high esteem throughout Iran.
He became famous for “The Narration of Triumph” and was considered a “master of martyred writers” by his colleagues and war veterans due to the fervent narrations he wrote for his documentaries.
SB/YAW
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MNA