The 30th Busan International Film Festival(BIFF) named Iranian film director Jafar Panahi as "The Asian Filmmaker of the Year," an award to recognize the most significant contribution in the Asian film industry.

The festival said on Tuesday that as a towering figure in Iranian cinema, Panahi explored the existence and freedom of individuals living amid censorship and political repression.

Panahi secretly created films capturing the political and social contradictions of Iranian society from a countercultural perspective and submitted them to international film festivals, despite repeated arrests, travel bans and a state-imposed filmmaking ban.

He was honored by all three major international film festivals - the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for "It Was Just an Accident," the Golden Lion in Venice for "The Circle," and the Golden Bear in Berlin for "Taxi."

This year's festival will run from September 17 to 26, and "The Asian Filmmaker of the Year" prize will be awarded to the Iranian director during the opening ceremony at the Busan Cinema Center.