Jafar Panahi is one of a handful of directors to have achieved the feat of winning the Venice Golden Lion, the Berlin Golden Bear and the Cannes Palme d’Or. But he has never been part of the Oscar race.

Why? Because Iran has never put forth any of the films from the dissident director, who was long banned by the country from making movies — though he made them anyway — and has been twice incarcerated.

But with his recent Palme d’Or winner “It Was Just an Accident,” that is about to change. The film’s U.S. distributor Neon and its French producer, Philippe Martin, are now pushing Panahi for Oscar glory, starting with an attempt to get France to submit the film as their contender for best international feature.

Meanwhile, after making a stop at Toronto Film Festival, Panahi has obtained

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