Artists in residence

Born and raised in Kermanshah-Kurdistan (1981), Iran. Independent filmmaker, member of the Iranian Cinema Producers Guild, member of the Iranian Cinema Directors Association

He spent his adolescence in his hometown of Kermanshah, working in theater groups. During this time, he worked as an actor in various theaters. He then moved to Tehran to continue his studies. He graduated from Tehran’s Soure University in the field of film directing. He was able to show his talent to others with the student films Havari and Milkan.

During this student period, he met Mohamad Rasoulof. This meeting took Vahid’s professional life to a new stage. During his student period, he worked as Mr. Rasoulof’s assistant in many films. Through this, he was able to get to know the professional cinema environment well. As a result of this friendly and professional relationship with Mr. Rasoulof, he was able to make his first feature film as a Gesher, which brought Vahid great success. This film was one of the favorite films of the great Iranian filmmaker Mr. Abbas Kiarostami. After the film Gasher, Vahid was able to continue with more confidence to make films that perhaps have not been made in Iranian cinema to this day. Different and strange films that tell the complex world of Vakilifar’s mind.

His five films Gesher (2010) –Taboor (2012)-Jonas(2016)-K9(2022)- Rhinos conquered the Middle East (2024) have won numerous awards and have been featured at many international film festivals.

With his unique and extremely personal style, Vahid has been able to set himself apart as a distinctly notable filmmaker in the eyes of cinematic and artistic experts worldwide. This is exactly why the critics of Film Cult(French) and Indiewire included Vahid’s film Taboor in the top ten best unreleased films of 2013.

These unique features of Vahid’s films have attracted the attention of great filmmakers, including the late Abbas Kiarostami , Sir John Burman, Amir Naderi and Jafar Panahi. Facing Vahid’s films is a new experience compared to other Iranian films because these films are influenced by European art cinema and are born from the depths of the soul and heart of an Eastern filmmaker.

His films have won numerous awards and have been featured at many international film festivals including but not limited to: San Sebastian IFF, Karlovy Vary IFF, Rotterdam IFF, Busan IFF, Tribeca IFF, Thessaloniki IFF, Edinburgh IFF, Sidney IFF, Miami IFF, Talin IFF, Nante-3 Continents IFF,Paris IFF and Rome IFF amongst other.

Diana Syrse is a composer and singer from Mexico. Her music is characterized by a mixture of sounds that shape an energy that on occasions is inspired by a musical dramaturgy of a text or a concept. She is particularly drawn by current issues of social relevance as well as musical chronicles of her daily life.

As a musician she also enjoys combining acoustic instruments with electronics and sometimes she uses her own voice to produce surreal urban soundscapes. On several occasions, her music is performed by herself in collaboration with other ensembles, choirs, and orchestras such as Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Staatsoper Hamburg, la Chambre aux échos, the Babylon Orchestra and the Trio D´Argent.