Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults

Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA, Persian: کانون پرورش فکری کودکان و نوجوانان‎, Kānoon-e Parvaresh-e Fekri-e Koodakān va Nojavānān, better known as Kanoon or Kānoon) is an Iranian institution with a wide range of cultural and artistic activities in the field of mental and cultural development for children and young adults. The organization was at the center of the vanguard of cultural production in the late 60s and early 1970s and is the platform through which many of Iran's most regarded artists and filmmakers, such as Abbas Kiarostami and Morteza Momayez, launched their careers.[1]

Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults

Type	Cultural
Established	8 January 1965
Founder	Farah Diba Leyli Amir Arjmand
Chairman	fazel Nazari
President	fazel Nazari
Academic staff	Book, Short film, Documentary, Music, Animation, Puppet Show, Toy, Computer training (software)
Location	Tehran , Iran
Website	Official website

History

Early years

Founded in 1965, Kanoon was originally one of the many cultural initiatives that fell under the broad purview of Farah Diba. Its initial ambitions were educational and social in nature; the program, led by one of Farah's close friends Lili Amir-Arjomand, involved building a network of both permanent and traveling libraries across the country in order to promote culture and literacy. During this period, Kanoon's publishing consisted only of translating and importing western classics such as Hans Christian Andersen. Eventually, Kanoon began producing and publishing its own books and soon after grew to be not just a social organization, but also a prolific producer of many kinds of materials for children.[1][2]

At the center of this leg of the initiative was Firooz Shirvanloo, who acted as both co-director and as an informal Art Director for the organization. Through Shirvanloo, Kanoon attracted many of the famous names that are associated with the project today: Abbas Kiarostami, Farshid Mesghali, Noureddin Zarrinkelk, Amir Naderi, Morteza Momayez, Ali Akbar Sadeghi, and more. Shirvanloo's strong political leanings also attracted an equally significant group of left-wing writers and researchers. (He was fired in 1972 for this very reason.)[1]

Eventually the book publishing and illustration segued into animation which then segued into film, which required posters and pretty soon Kanoon was producing everything from toys designed by sculptors, to staging theatrical productions, printing LPs of Iranian music, LPs of Western Classical music, LPs of poetry, festivals, and conferences. Many these materials toured with the traveling libraries.

Within the walls of Kanoon, there was an unprecedented amount of freedom and support provided to the artists involved. Under these circumstances Kanoon turned into a sort of quasi-utopian hub, or incubator or laboratory for an incredible group of artists, many of whom worked across several media (most of the major protagonists were designers and also illustrators and would experiment with animation or filmmaking if they chose to). To have this type venue available at this pivotal moment when Iran is transitioning into modernity in terms of its visual culture was absolutely crucial. The output of Kanoon during this era more or less defined the aura of childhood in Iran for an entire generation. These were the books that everybody read, the music that everyone heard and this legacy is still quite potent today.[1]

This incorporation of folk elements was critical to Kanoon's signature style not only visually but more so in the stories were told in the books and in the films and in the music. Often there was a certain amalgamation of elements, such as folk songs played in a psychedelic style, or a folk story illustrated in a very graphic manner.

Post-Revolution

Although no longer at the center of an artistic vanguard, Kanoon continues to operate as an important public institution to this day; continuing with its program of libraries, publishing, animation, and most significantly, film.[3]

In 1999, Children of Heaven was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film of Academy Awards (Oscar) and honored in many festivals globally.[4]

Partial filmography

Feature films

Year	Title	Director	Notes
1974	The Traveller	Abbas Kiarostami
1974	Entezar (Waiting)	Amir Naderi
1985	The Runner	Amir Naderi
1987	Kelid (The Key)	Ebrahim Forouzesh	Written by Abbas Kiarostami
1987	Where Is the Friend's Home?	Abbas Kiarostami
1989	Homework	Abbas Kiarostami
1989	Bashu, the Little Stranger	Bahram Beyzai
1992	Life and Nothing More	Abbas Kiarostami
1998	Children of Heaven	Majid Majidi	Nominated for and Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

Short films

Year	Title	Director	Notes
1969	Amoo Sibiloo (Uncle Moustache)	Bahram Beyzai
1970	Safar (the Journey)	Bahram Beyzai
1970	The Bread and Alley	Abbas Kiarostami
1972	Black and White	Sohrab Shahid-Saless
1972	Zang-e Tafrih	Abbas Kiarostami
1974	Harmonica	Amir Naderi
1974	Hassani	Shahpur Gharib
1975	Two Solutions for One Problem	Abbas Kiarostami
1975	So Can I	Abbas Kiarostami
1976	Rangha	Abbas Kiarostami

Animations

Year	Title	Director	Notes
1970	Mister Monster	Farshid Mesghali
1970	Misunderstanding	Farshid Mesghali
1971	The Boy, the Bird and the Musical Instrument	Farshid Mesghali
1971	Seven Cities	Ali Akbar Sadeghi
1972	The Grey City	Farshid Mesghali
1972	Flower Storm	Ali Akbar Sadeghi
1973	A Very Good Worm	Farshid Mesghali
1973	Boasting	Ali Akbar Sadeghi
1973	The Bird of Doom	Morteza Momayez
1974	Look Again	Farshid Mesghali
1974	Rook	Ali Akbar Sadeghi
1975	The Sun King	Ali Akbar Sadeghi
1975	Mad Mad World	Noureddin Zarrinkelk
1977	Amir Hamza the Lover and the Dancing Zebra	Noureddin Zarrinkelk

References

1. "Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children & Young Adults (Kanoon)". Bidoun (16). 2009.
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNjaYKAm0I0 Kanoon Interview with Lili Amir-Arjomand
3. ". : . کانون پرورش فکری کودکان و نوجوانان . : . صفحه اصلی".
4. http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/DisplayMain.jsp?curTime=1446510585586

External links

• Official website
• More about IIDCYA