Alain Renais and a golden opportunity

Film scholar, author, critic, and director Bahman Maghsoudlou is the recipient of Iran’s prestigious Forough Farrokhzad literary award (1353-1975) for writing and editing a series of books about cinema and theater. These include the acclaimed Iranian Cinema, (NYU, 1987) and Grass: Untold Stories (Mazda,2008), a definitive account of the making of Grass: A Nation’s Battle for Life, the groundbreaking documentary filmed by Merian Cooper, Ernest Schoedsack and Marguerite Harrison in Iran in 1924. His most recent books in Farsi are When the Clouds Did Not Hide the Moon (NY: IFVC,2020) and The Poetic Realism of Jean Renoir (Tehran: Hekmatkalame,2021). His last book is Charmed by the Silver Screen: The World Cinema (Tehran: Damon,2023), Bahram Beyzaie & his Three Actresses; Interview (Tehran: Borj, third print 2025), Charmed by the Silver Screen: Iranian Cinema (Tehran: Aadeh, 2024). His new book is 55 Years, 85 Festivals: History, Reviews and Memories (Gostareh: Tehran 2025). He has produced more than twenty films, as well as writing, directing, and producing ten documentaries. His first short documentary, Ardeshir Mohasses and His Caricatures was released in 1972, and later screened at the Leipzig Film Festival in 1996. In the USA, he created the Renowned Iranian Artists series, which includes such films as Ahmad Mahmoud: a Noble Novelist (2004), Iran Darroudi: the Painter of Ethereal Moments (2010), and Ardeshir Mohasses: The Rebellious Artist (2012), an extended update of his original film about Mohasses. The last one is Najaf Daryabandari: A Window on the World (2020), screened at Mesa Film Fest 2021. As a film historian, he has so far written, produced, and directed four entries in the History of Iranian Cinema series: Abbas Kiarostami: A Report (2013), which premiered at the Montreal World Film festival, Razor’s Edge: The Legacy of Iranian Actresses (2016), Bahram Beyzaie: A Mosaic of Metaphors (2019) and Dariush Mehrjui: Making the Cow (2022). His new feature Documentary is Googoosh Cinema. His films have been selected for more than 100 major film festivals and have garnered many awards. These include The Suitors (Cannes, 1988), Manhattan by Numbers (Venice, Toronto, London, Chicago, 1993), Seven Servants, with legendary actor Anthony Quinn (Locarno, Montréal, Toronto, 1996), Life in Fog (1998), the single most awarded short documentary film in the history of Iranian Cinema, and Silence of the Sea, winner of six prizes and a selection for more than 20 other film festivals, including the Sundance Film Festival in 2004. Maghsoudlou activities involving international cinema further include participation as a panelist, juror, and lecturer at a wide variety of film festivals in Russia, Italy, the USA, Canada and Iran. He also served as president of the jury at the 2012 Ibn Arabi Film Festival (IBAFF) in Spain and the Montreal World Film Festival, 2014. Having organized the first-ever Iranian Film Festival in New York in 1980, he originated the International Short Film Festival: Independent Films in Iran, which was held in October 2007 at the Asia Society in New York. A graduate in cinema studies from the City University of New York with a PhD from Columbia, Maghsoudlou lives in New York. He is a member of the PEN American center. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahman_Maghsoudlou https://fa.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/بهمن_مقصودلو