US musician Rhiannon Giddens performs "American railroad" onstage with the Silkroad ensemble at BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) in Brooklyn, New York City on November 23, 2024. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP) (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

(FILES) Iranian director and producer Mohammad Rasoulof delivers a speech on stage after he was awarded with a Special Jury Prize for the film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" during the Closing Ceremony at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 25, 2024. Forced to flee Iran, dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof says it is bittersweet that his latest movie will contend at the Oscars -- under the banner of another country. "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," a paranoid thriller that was shot in secret and depicts a family torn apart by Iran's brutally repressive politics, has earned rave reviews and won many festival prizes, including at Cannes. But each country can submit just one movie for the best international film Oscar, and in authoritarian countries like Iran, that choice of film is made by state-controlled organizations. "Of course, it is unimaginable that the Islamic Republic could have submitted a film like this for the Academy Awards," Rasoulof told AFP. (Photo by Valery HACHE / AFP) (Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images)

(FILES) (FromL) Iranian actress Setareh Maleki, Iranian director and producer Mohammad Rasoulof and hold Iranian actress Mahsa Rostami portraits of Iranian actor Missagh Zareh (R) and Iranian actress Soheila Golestani as they pose during a photocall for the film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 25, 2024. Forced to flee Iran, dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof says it is bittersweet that his latest movie will contend at the Oscars -- under the banner of another country. "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," a paranoid thriller that was shot in secret and depicts a family torn apart by Iran's brutally repressive politics, has earned rave reviews and won many festival prizes, including at Cannes. But each country can submit just one movie for the best international film Oscar, and in authoritarian countries like Iran, that choice of film is made by state-controlled organizations. "Of course, it is unimaginable that the Islamic Republic could have submitted a film like this for the Academy Awards," Rasoulof told AFP. (Photo by Valery HACHE / AFP) (Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images)

(FILES) Iranian director and producer Mohammad Rasoulof poses during a photocall after he won the a Special Jury Prize for the film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" during the Closing Ceremony at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 25, 2024. Forced to flee Iran, dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof says it is bittersweet that his latest movie will contend at the Oscars -- under the banner of another country. "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," a paranoid thriller that was shot in secret and depicts a family torn apart by Iran's brutally repressive politics, has earned rave reviews and won many festival prizes, including at Cannes. But each country can submit just one movie for the best international film Oscar, and in authoritarian countries like Iran, that choice of film is made by state-controlled organizations. "Of course, it is unimaginable that the Islamic Republic could have submitted a film like this for the Academy Awards," Rasoulof told AFP. (Photo by LOIC VENANCE / AFP) (Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)

(FILES) Iranian director and producer Mohammad Rasoulof delivers a speech on stage after he was awarded with a Special Jury Prize for the film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" during the Closing Ceremony at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 25, 2024. Forced to flee Iran, dissident director Mohammad Rasoulof says it is bittersweet that his latest movie will contend at the Oscars -- under the banner of another country. "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," a paranoid thriller that was shot in secret and depicts a family torn apart by Iran's brutally repressive politics, has earned rave reviews and won many festival prizes, including at Cannes. But each country can submit just one movie for the best international film Oscar, and in authoritarian countries like Iran, that choice of film is made by state-controlled organizations. "Of course, it is unimaginable that the Islamic Republic could have submitted a film like this for the Academy Awards," Rasoulof told AFP. (Photo by Valery HACHE / AFP) (Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images)

Outside the mansion where brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez murdered their parents in 1989 in Beverly Hills, California. The Menendez brothers, who were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 and sentenced to life in prison without parole, will make a virtual appearance in a hearing in a Los Angeles courtroom in November 25, 2024. (Photo by DAVID SWANSON / AFP) (Photo by DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Outside the mansion where brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez murdered their parents in 1989 in Beverly Hills, California. The Menendez brothers, who were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 and sentenced to life in prison without parole, will make a virtual appearance in a hearing in a Los Angeles courtroom in November 25, 2024. (Photo by DAVID SWANSON / AFP) (Photo by DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images)

A group takes a selfie on November 23, 2024, outside the mansion where brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez murdered their parents in 1989 in Beverly Hills, California. The Menendez brothers, who were found guilty of first-degree murder in 1996 and sentenced to life in prison without parole, will make a virtual appearance in a hearing in a Los Angeles courtroom in November 25, 2024. (Photo by DAVID SWANSON / AFP) (Photo by DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images)