Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Mohsen Makhmalbaf was born in Tehran in 1336 of the Iranian solar calendar (1957). He began his cultural and political activities in adolescence and, after the 1979 Revolution, turned to writing and artistic work. His first experiences in cinema were shaped by the social, ethical, and political concerns of his time.

Makhmalbaf gradually moved away from his early ideological cinema toward a more personal, poetic, and experimental form of filmmaking. His films often address such subjects as humanity, freedom, poverty, violence, faith, truth, art, and the relationship between reality and imagination. In his work, he challenges the boundaries between documentary and fiction, reality and representation.

Among his most important films are The Peddler (1987), Nasereddin Shah, Actor-e Cinema (1992), The Actor (1993), Gabbeh (1996), The Silence (1998), and Kandahar (2001). Kandahar received international attention and played an important role in introducing Iranian cinema to global audiences.

Makhmalbaf has also worked in film education and in nurturing a new generation of filmmakers. His family is active in cinema as well: his wife, Marzieh Meshkini, and his daughters, Samira and Hana Makhmalbaf, are recognized filmmakers.

Makhmalbaf’s thought and cinema have consistently been marked by human and social concerns. He has used cinema as a means of questioning the human condition, social suffering, and the possibility of change, and his works have received attention at numerous international festivals.