About me

As a child with severe stuttering, I endured a traumatic childhood. This communication challenge made me a keen observer, a skill that eventually shaped my profession. My isolation also led me to immerse myself in art and creativity. Additionally, I found solace in the companionship of animals, filling my loneliness by rescuing and caring for abandoned or injured animals until they recovered. A pivotal moment in my life came when I discovered VHS films, sparking a passion for cinema that drove me to become a filmmaker. I would spend countless hours rewatching a single movie, and this interest remained strong even after my speech improved and my communication skills developed.

My first semi-professional experience in filmmaking began when I started editing films for my family and friends on a computer. Several years later, during a high school summer break, I applied for a job at a film studio owned by a friend of my father. There, I learned a great deal about the filmmaking process, including editing, camera work, and directing. I also assisted in editing a commercial short film, marking my first professional editing experience. These valuable experiences later helped me create my first short film. Around the same time, I taught myself computer programming through books and won first place in a school competition. Despite my desire to pursue a filmmaking degree at university, my father insisted that I complete my compulsory military service first and refused to support my education otherwise.

After finishing my military service, I was finally able to pursue my passion. After extensive research, I chose to study at the Iranian Youth Cinema Society Institute, a renowned film school where famous directors like Abbas Kiarostami began their careers and made their first short films. The institute’s practical approach to cinema stood in contrast to the university’s more academic focus. In my second semester, I completed my first short film, Sunrise, which was nominated for an award at the Iranian Youth Short Film Festival. Creating this film was the first step toward fulfilling my childhood dream, but I knew I still had a long way to go to become a professional director. To gain more experience, I voluntarily edited my classmates’ short films, one of which, History of an Existence, won first prize at the Tehran Short Film Festival. With a solid foundation in filmmaking, I was ready to create my second film, This Is Life. This project presented numerous challenges, such as language barriers—since it was bilingual in French and Persian—and the difficulties of shooting scenes inside a car at night.

My next project began when I encountered a popular street band while doing street photography. Captivated by the quality of their music, I decided to make a documentary about them, which I titled Metal Dynamics. However, due to restrictions imposed by the Iranian government on films related to music and social issues, I was unable to release the documentary in Iran. Fearing arrest if I submitted the film to international festivals, I refrained from doing so. Meanwhile, to improve my technical skills in videography and earn a living, I started working as a commercial photographer and videographer, collaborating with various advertising agencies to create promotional videos. My work experience also led to collaborations with artists as a photographer and videographer, as well as roles as a technical manager and idea developer at two art exhibition centers.