Majid Majidi

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Majid Majidi

Majid Majidi (* 1959 in Tehran , Iran ), Persian مجید مجیدی, is an Iranian film director , film producer , film actor and screenwriter . He is considered one of the most important Iranian filmmakers of the 1990s and 2000s.

biography

Youth and early career

Majidi grew up in poor conditions in Tehran and began to play in amateur theater groups of Kanun-e Parvaresh at the age of fourteen . He studied at the Institute for Dramatic Arts in Tehran. After the Islamic Revolution in 1979, he worked as a professional actor and starred in several films by Mohsen Makhmalbaf , including Boycott from 1985.

In the early 1980s he directed several documentaries and short films himself. His first feature film was Baduk (1992), which he directed, wrote the screenplay and played one of the two leading roles. The film was shown at the Cannes International Film Festival and won several national awards. After the 45-minute drama Akhareen abadeh (1993), he released the film Khoda miad in 1995 , which is about a seriously ill mother in a small village whose daughter sends a letter addressed to God asking her to help her.

Success as a director

Majidi's breakthrough came in 1996 with Pedar ( father ) through a fourteen-year-old who was looking for work after the death of his father and who discovered after a trip to southern Iran that his family had changed. Pedar has won prizes at several film festivals, including the Iranian Fajr Film Festival for Best Film , the jury award at the San Sebastián International Film Festival and an Honorable Mention at the São Paulo International Film Festival .

Even more successful than Pedar , both commercially and at film awards, was the children's film Children of Heaven , which premiered in 1997. It is about two children from a poor Iranian family who only have one pair of shoes together. In addition to awards at the Fajr Film Festival and the Canadian World Film Festival , the film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film .

His next directorial work was the drama The Colors of Paradise (1999) about a blind boy (played by Mohsen Ramezani ), whose father is ashamed of his son's handicap. The film won a special prize at the Festival Internacional de Cine de Gijón , which shows films for children and young people, and the main prize at the World Film Festival, and was nominated twice for the Young Artist Award .

With Baran ( Regen ) from 2001 he achieved another festival success. The film, which tells the love story between a 17-year-old Azerbaijani and an Afghan girl who disguised herself as a boy to get a job, won the screenwriting and directing awards at the Festival Internacional de Cine de Gijón and the main award at World Film Festival. It was also nominated for the European Film Prize in the Best Non-European Film category and for the Satellite Award .

The documentary Pa berahneh ta Herat ( Barefoot to Herat ) and the five-minute short film Olympik tu urdugah were other projects by Majidis before he was able to present another feature film in 2005 with Beed-e majnoon ( Weeping Willow ). The drama focuses on the blind university professor Youssef ( Parviz Parastui ), who travels to France for an operation because of an illness. The film won four awards at the Fajr Film Festival.

In 2008 Majidi was represented with his feature film The Song of Sparrows in the competition of the Berlin Film Festival and main actor Reza Naji was honored with the Silver Bear for Best Actor . Months later, the film was selected as the official Iranian entry for the nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2009 Academy Awards.

Filmography

As a director

  • 1981: Enfejâr ( Explosion ) (short film)
  • 1984: Hudaj
  • 1988: Ruz-e emtehân ( The exam day )
  • 1989: Yek ruz zendegi bâ asir (Live a day with the prisoner )
  • 1992: Baduk
  • 1993: Âkharin âbâdeh
  • 1995: Khodâ miâd ( God is coming )
  • 1996: Pedar ( father )
  • 1997: Bachehâ-ye âseman ( Children of Heaven )
  • 1999: Rang-e Khodâ ( The Colors of Paradise - literally The Color of God )
  • 2001: Bârân ( rain )
  • 2002: Pâ barahneh tâ Herât ( Barefoot to Herat )
  • 2003: Olympik tu urdugah ( Olympics in the tent camp ) (short film)
  • 2005: Bid-e majnun ( weeping willow )
  • 2007: Âvâz-e Gonjeshkhâ ( The Song of Sparrows )

As an actor

  • 1981: Towjih ( justification )
  • 1982: Marg Digari ( Another Death )
  • 1984: Este'âze ( Refuge from Evil )
  • 1984: Do Cheshmân Bisu ( Two unfixed eyes )
  • 1985: Boycott ( Baykot )
  • 1986: Tir bârân ( rain of arrows )
  • 1987: Kased (short film)
  • 1987: Dar jostodju kahramân ( Looking for a hero )
  • 1988: Ruz-e emtehân ( The exam day )
  • 1990: Tâ marg didâr ( The Meeting Until Death )
  • 1990: Shenâ dar zemestân ( swimming in winter )
  • 1992: Baduk
  • 1993: Âkharin âbâdeh

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. Official Oscar 2008 shortlist of foreign language feature films with English titles (English; accessed October 22, 2008)
personal data
SURNAME Majidi, Majid
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Iranian film director and screenwriter
DATE OF BIRTH 1959
PLACE OF BIRTH Tehran , Iran