Mohammad Gorjestani (born February 8, 1984) is an Iranian-American writer, director, and producer.[1][2] He is best known for Exit 12, Sister Hearts and Refuge.[3][4][5]
Mohammad Gorjestani | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 8, 1984 |
| Nationality | Iranian-American |
| Occupation(s) | Director, Writer, Producer and cinematographer |
| Years active | 2007–present |
Life and career edit
Gorjestani was born in Tehran, Iran. His family fled to the United States in 1988 due to the Iran/Iraq War. He attended Cupertino High School and later attended the Vancouver Film School.[1] His thesis film, The Shade, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007 and was later acquired by the BBC.[6]
Gorjestani received film grants from ITVS, for his near future short film Refuge, starring Nikohl Boosheri, and screened at the Tribeca Film Festival and SXSW Film Festival.[7] He was named one of Filmmaker Magazine's 25 New Faces of Independent Film.[8] His most recent short film, Exit 12, was acquired by Fox Searchlight Pictures.[9]
Gorjestani has earned 9 Vimeo Staff Picks for his works.[2] He created “The Happy Birthday Project”, a series of short films on Police killings in America.[10] He is also a 2x recipient of the San Francisco Film Society's Kenneth Rainin Foundation (KRF) Filmmaking Grant for his feature film, currently in development.[citation needed] He is co-founder of Even/Odd.[11]
Filmography edit
- The Shade (Sayeh) (2007) (Also writer)
- Refuge (2013) (Also writer)
- Happy Birthday Oscar Grant (2015)
- MissMe: The Artful Vandal (2016)
- Happy Birthday Philando Castile (2016)
- Happy Birthday Mario Woods (2016)
- The Boombox Collection: Boots Riley (2016)
- The Boombox Collection: Zion I (2016)
- Yassin Falafel (2017)
- Made in Iowa (2017)
- Lakota in America (2017)
- Sister Hearts (2018)
- Exit 12 (2019) (Also writer)
Awards and nominations edit
| Year | Result | Award | Category | Work |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Won | Tribeca Film Festival | Tribeca X Award[12] | Sister Hearts |
| 2019 | Won | Minneapolis Saint Paul International Film Festival | Audience Choice Award[13] | Exit 12 |
| Won | SXSW Film Festival | Grand Jury Award[14] | ||
| Won | Camden International Film Festival | Best Short Film[15] |
External links edit
References edit
- ^ a b "Mohammad Gorjestani". filmmakermagazine.com. 15 July 2013. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
- ^ a b "Meet the filmmaker behind Square's innovative video series". vimeo.com. 19 January 2018. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "EXIT 12". artandhealing.org. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "SHORT FILMS IN FOCUS: SISTER HEARTS". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Mohammad Gorjestani's Short Film 'Refuge'". metroactive.com. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "PRESS RELEASE - 2007 SHORT FILM AND FAMILY SHORT FILM PROGRAMS". tribecafilm.com. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Refuge". itvs.org. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Filmmaker Magazine Announces the 25 New Faces of Independent Film of 2013". indiewire.com. 18 July 2013. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Fox Searchlight Nabs 'Exit 12' Short Docu; Hidden Empire Film Group To Be Honored By Location Managers Guild International – Film Briefs". deadline.com. 22 August 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Remembering Philando Castile on His Birthday". citylab.com. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "32 UNDER 32: MOHAMMAD GORJESTANI". thesfegotist.com. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "SQUARE'S 'FOR EVERY KIND OF DREAM' WINS TRIBECA X AWARD". adage.com. 26 April 2018. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "MSPIFF38 AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS". mspfilm.org. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
- ^ "Announcing the 2019 SXSW Film Festival Jury and Special Awards". sxsw.com. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-23.
- ^ "Camden International Film Festival closes 15th edition with awards". knox.villagesoup.com. Retrieved 2019-04-23.