Samira Makhmalbaf facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Samira Makhmalbaf
سمیرا مخملباف
Makhmalbaf in 2020
Born	(1980-02-15) 15 February 1980 (age 45) Tehran, Iran
Alma mater	Roehampton University
Occupation	Filmmaker
Years active	1998–2008
Parent(s)	Mohsen Makhmalbaf (father) Fatemeh Meshkini (mother)
Relatives	Hana Makhmalbaf (sister) Meysam Makhmalbaf (brother)

Samira Makhmalbaf (Persian: سمیرا مخملباف, Samira Makhmalbaaf), born on February 15, 1980, is a talented filmmaker and writer from Iran. She is the daughter of Mohsen Makhmalbaf, who is also a famous film director. Samira is known as a key part of the Iranian New Wave in cinema. She has won many important awards, including two special Jury Prizes at the Cannes Film Festival.

Early Life and Learning

Samira Makhmalbaf was born in Tehran, Iran, in 1980. Her father, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, was a filmmaker. From a young age, Samira often joined her dad on his movie sets. She watched him film and then edit his movies.

Samira said her love for movies started when she was seven. She even acted in her father's film, The Cyclist, in 1987. When she was 14, Samira left high school. She chose to study filmmaking for five years at the Makhmalbaf Film House. Later, at age 20, she studied Psychology and Law in London at Roehampton University.

Her Amazing Film Career

When Samira was just 17, she directed her first full-length movie, The Apple. Before this, she had already made two video projects. She showed The Apple at the famous Cannes Film Festival.

Samira felt that her movie The Apple was possible because of new changes in Iran. The film was shown at over 100 international film festivals. It was also released in more than 30 countries. In 2000, she was a judge at the 22nd Moscow International Film Festival.

Awards and Recognition

Samira Makhmalbaf has won and been nominated for many awards. She was nominated twice for the top prize, the Golden Palm, at the Cannes Film Festival. This was for her films Blackboards (2001) and At Five in the Afternoon (2003). She won the Jury Prize at Cannes for both of these movies.

She also won the Sutherland Trophy at the London Film Festival for The Apple in 1998. In 2002, she received the UNESCO Award at the Venice Film Festival for her work on 11'09"01 September 11. In 2003, a group of film experts named her one of the top 40 directors working today.

Challenges During Filming

While making her film Two-legged Horse in Afghanistan, Samira and her team faced a scary attack. A man pretending to be an extra threw a hand grenade. Six cast members were badly hurt, and a horse died.

Samira said, "I saw little boys falling to the ground, and the whole street was full of blood." Despite this, she was determined to finish her film. She completed Two-legged Horse, and it was released in France in 2008. After this, she won more awards at various film festivals.

Film Style and Important Messages

Samira Makhmalbaf's films often mix real-life stories with fictional ones. She uses everyday people as actors and shows life as it truly is. Her movies often explore ideas of progress and change.

She wants her films to show real-world problems, like poverty. She also tackles important topics such as women's rights and education. For example, her 2003 film, At Five in the Afternoon, is about a young woman in Afghanistan. This woman wants to get a more open-minded education at a non-religious school.

Samira believes that movies can show deep truths. She tries to combine imagination with reality in her films. She wants her audience to feel the real struggles of people.

Her Personal Life and Activism

Samira's father, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, had three children with her mother, Fatemeh Meshkini. Samira was the firstborn. Sadly, her mother passed away in an accident in 1982. Her father later married her mother's sister, Marziyeh Meshkini.

Samira Makhmalbaf has been a strong supporter of women's rights for most of her life. She believes that even with challenges, things can get better for women in Iran. She feels that Iranian women are strong and have many important things to say.

She thinks her movies can make a deeper impact than just reporting facts. She wants her films to live longer and be more meaningful.

Showing Reality in Films

Her film At Five in the Afternoon was the first movie made in Afghanistan after the Taliban left. Samira wanted to show the real situation there. She explained that even though the Taliban were gone, their old ideas were still strong in people's minds. She wanted to show the big differences between men and women in Afghanistan.

Samira also talks about how hard it is for women directors in Iran. She hopes that with more freedom, Iran will have many more women filmmakers. She believes that by challenging old ideas, the situation for women will slowly improve.

Filmography

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Samira Makhmalbaf para niños