Biography

Shahrzad Dadgar is an award-winning director, writer, and photographer with a BA in Urban Engineering and an MFA in Feature Film Production from UCF. She currently serves as a tenure-track assistant professor in media and entertainment at CSU Pueblo, where she continues to inspire and educate future generations in the field.

She has written and directed two acclaimed short films, 500 Ounces of Gold and Highlight, both of which have received multiple awards at international festivals. In 2016, she was honored with the Golden Gazelle from the Persian International Film Festival in Australia and the "Best Script" award from the Cervaignano Film Festival in Italy. Additionally, she received the "Best Inspirational Women in Film" award from the Festigious Film Festival in Los Angeles. Shahrzad has over a decade of experience working as a freelance assistant director and script supervisor in the motion picture industry.

In 2017, her short film Highlight was banned from public exhibitions in Iran. The film explores radical beliefs about women's virginity, pregnancy outside of marriage, and the challenges faced by transgender individuals in Iran. Her first short film, 500 Ounces of Gold, tells the story of a religious woman faced with a profound decision about abortion. Through her work, Shahrzad promotes women's empowerment and the importance of gender fluidity.

Narrating human rights stories, such as pro-choice and transgender rights, within the restrictive environment of Iran has shaped her artistic and entrepreneurial approach. She has developed creative methods to fund her independent, micro-budget projects that illuminate societal norms and stereotypes related to gender, race, and class. By addressing these issues through the lens of intersectionality, she aims to inspire audiences to perceive intimacy and romance as shared human experiences, fostering acceptance and understanding of differences to create love grounded in profound human rights and equality.

Shahrzad is currently in the post-production phase of her first feature film, which addresses topics such as body image, gender fluidity, and sexism in a dramedy. While working on distribution strategies, she is also developing a TV series pilot, Love on the Rocks, which explores the world of speed dating to engage her students in a professional setting with the support of CSU Pueblo.
- IMDb mini biography by: Shahrzad Dadgar