Majid Majidi

Majid Majidi is an Iranian film director, producer and screenwriter. At the age of 14 he started his career as an actor in amateur theater groups, he has acted in various films, notably "Boycott" (1985) directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf. Later, he started writing and directing short films. His debut feature film as a director and screenwriter is marked by "Baduk" (1992), presented at the Directors Fortnight in Cannes and won awards at Tehran's Fajr Film Festival. Since then, he has directed many noteworthy films that won worldwide recognition's, notably Children of Heaven (1997), winner of the Best Picture award at the Montreal International Film Festival and nominated for the Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards, this is the first Iranian film to have been nominated by the Academy. 'The Color of Paradise' (1999), also won the Best Picture award from Montreal International Film Festival. Majidi has also directed several other feature films like Baran in 2001, The Willow Tree (One Life More), The Song of Sparrows and a feature-length documentary titled 'Barefoot to Herat' which chronicles life in refugee camps and the city of Herat during and after the anti-Taliban offensive of 2001. He has won numerous international awards including 'Douglas Sirk Award' in 2001 and the 'Amici Vittorio de Sica Award' in 2003. Majid Majidi was one of five international film directors invited by the Beijing government to create a documentary short film.

Born on: 17 April, 1959

Born in: Tehran, Iran.