"It Was Just An Accident" by Iranian director Jafar Panahi won the Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or top prize on Saturday.
Panahi, who has been arrested several times for his filmmaking, was last at the festival in person in 2003, when "Crimson Gold" was screened in the Un Certain Regard category.
"Art mobilizes the creative energy of the most precious, most alive part of us. A force that transforms darkness into forgiveness, hope and new life," said jury president Juliette Binoche when announcing the award.
"It Was Just An Accident" follows Vahid, played by Vahid Mobasseri, who kidnaps a man with a false leg who looks just like the one who tortured him in prison and ruined his life.
Vahid sets out to verify with other prison survivors that it is indeed their torturer, and then decide what to do with him.
The Grand Prix, the second-highest prize after the Palme d'Or, was awarded to "Sentimental Value" from acclaimed director Joachim Trier.
Twenty-two films in total were competing for the prize at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, with entries from well-known directors Richard Linklater, Wes Anderson and Belgium's Dardenne brothers.
