Deratany's "Haram Iran" Earns Place in Greenlight Screenplay Competition's Top Ten

    LEDGEWOOD, NJ, November 02, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- A screenplay by globally-acclaimed playwright, gay rights advocate, and Chicago politician and attorney Jay Paul Deratany, has won a place in the top ten of Green Light's screenplay competition.

"Haram Iran", which depicts the plight of two young men sentenced to death for homosexual acts in 2005 Tehran, debuted in the Chicago Theater district in 2008, and moved to the west coast in March 2010, with production and live performances at Los Angeles' Celebration Theater on Santa Monica Boulevard.

Lauded by the Human Rights Campaign and GayAsylum UK's Omar Kuddus, the play is a timely exploration of the homophobia and bigotry which exist in modern Iran, and which still reside within the global heart.

The Greenlight.com has worked in tandem with Mirimax Films and Live Planet. It is a free resource for filmmakers, script writers, and actors; and awards annual prizes. Deratany's play is listed on the site's 2010 list of semifinalists.

http://the-greenlight.hostei.com/contest.html

Deratany plans to bring the play to the London stage in Spring, 2011, and has obtained a grant from the London Arts Council which will assist in this endeavor.

Jay Paul Deratany is a personal injury attorney in Chicago, IL.

He has won multi-million dollar settlements for his clients, with some awards being the highest in Cook County history.

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