Biography

Arsalan Amiri, born in 1975 in Iranian Kurdistan, studied filmmaking at the Iranian Youth Cinema Society in Sanandaj-Kurdistan in 1995. He then obtained his BA in Film Directing from Tehran Art University, and his MA in Dramatic Literature from the University of Tehran. He started his filming career by directing, producing, and editing documentary films.

Amiri worked as a screenwriter and editor for a number of TV Movies for Iran's National Broadcasting Corporation (IRIB). These include The The Story of Davood and the Dove (2011) , a film produced by Kianoush Ayari and directed by Ida Panahandeh.

Amiri's first feature film working as both co-screenwriter and editor was Nahid (2015), a film directed by Ida Panahandeh that was nominated for best screenplay in Iran's Fajr International Film Festival (FIFF). Nahid (2015) was also screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, where it was awarded with the Prix de l'avenir.

Villa Dwellers (2017) , directed by Munir Gheidi, was his second movie as a screenwriter, which earned him a nomination for best screenplay in 2017's Fajr Film Festival. This was followed by Israfil (2017) , his third film working as co-screenwriter, which was directed by Ida Panahandeh and screened in the BFI London Film Festival in the same year.

Later on, He worked again with Ida Panahandeh as a co-screenwriter and editor in The Nikaidos' Fall (2018) , which filmed in Japan. His cooperation with Ida Panahandeh continued in Titi (2020) , as producer and screenwriter, which was screened in the 33rd Tokyo International Film Festival.

Amiri made his directorial debut in Zalava (2021) , a film that was shot during the Corona Pandemic in a village near Sanandaj-Kurdistan. Zalava (2021) garnered nominations in 10 sections in Fajr Film Festival in 2021, and won Best First Feature Director, Best Script, Best Supporting Actor, and special mention for its photography.

First international screening of Zalava was in 78th Venice international film festival that won dabble prize Fipresci (best film of parallel sections) and Grand Prize of 36th Venice international critics'week. premiere of Zalava in north America was started by 46th Toronto international film festival (TIFF2021). Zalava received awards Best Picture from Fantastic Fest Austin (2021) also won dabble prize from Duhokiff (2021) and has screened in festivals such as Rotterdam, Gothenburg, Glasgow, Sao Paulo, Morbido,...
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