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LOS ANGELES
Iranian Women in
Film & TV Seminar

Homa Sarshar led the panel discussion at Iranian Women in Film & TV event presented by Noor Iranian Film Festival in association with Iranian-American Women Foundation on April 6. On the panel were Mahnaz Afshar, Iranian actress from Iran; award-winning film and TV Actress Shohreh Agdashloo; film and TV Actress Nazanin Boniadi; and theater, film and TV actress Necar Zadegan.
The seminar provided perspectives on women, especially Iranian women, working in cinema and television facing discrimination.  Sarshar did an excellent job of asking questions and leading the panel.
Aghdashloo, said that the film and TV industries still have discrimination issues. That those who come here from the Middle East may have a hard time when trying to get work as an Iranian in the industry and face many difficulties. She encourages them continue to stand for what they believe in, believe in yourself, and don’t give up. When Aghdashloo herself wanted to start working as an actress, her parents didn’t approve so she decided to take last name of her first husband to protect their name. She said that winning awards is what made working in the industry easier for her. Aghdashloo has been awarded several film critics’ awards and a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

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She spoke fondly of Mahnaz Afshar and saying that working in Iran as an actress is not easy and she greatly admires her work. She said of Boniadi and Zadegan, they are talented actresses and although work was not easy for them, they continued to work hard despite obstacles and created names for themselves.
Mahnaz Asfhar said that this seminar is a cultural revolution. That in Iran, the women have really changed the culture of cinema there.  Despite what common opinion might be, Afshar believes that actress and female directors are more powerful than their LA-counterparts; they have found a way to work even under strict censorship.
Nazanin Boniadi discussed how she pursued medicine before working as an actress, something she always wanted to do, but her parents encouraged her to be a doctor. What happened next? Boniadi convinced her parents, although she didn’t have formal acting training, that she could do it. Boniadi who has worked on shows such as “Homeland” and “Scandal” says that she is grateful that she is offered important roles. She also said that we “all appreciate Shohreh Aghdashloo who opened the gate to Hollywood for us.”
Necar Zadegan, who always loved acting, played in her first Iranian role in a theater production that Hooshang Touzie and Shohreh Aghdashloo were producing. She then got a good agent and the thing that really encouraged her to continue working in acting was Shohreh Agdashloo’s nomination for an Academy Award.  She has played roles in TV shows “24” and “Rake”, as well as several films.

HOLLYWOOD         
Shohreh Agdashloo to Guest Star in “Bones” episode

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Shohreh Aghdashloo will be playing in the upcoming episode of “Bones” as character Arastoo’s mother.
Cam (Tamara Taylor) is hesitant to meet Arastoo’s (Pej Vahdat) father (Braeden Marcott) and mother (Shohreh Aghdashloo) for the first time, and a couple of the photos in the slideshow offer a look at the “meeting the parents” dinner.
Things get awkward quickly, of course, when Arastoo’s mom begins to question the couple. Will the Vaziri parents approve of their son’s older girlfriend (especially since she doesn’t share the same religion)?
Best known for her Academy Award-nominated role in “The House of Sand and Fog,” Aghdashloo has also appeared on “Grimm,” “NCIS” and “The Mob Doctor.”
“Bones” season 9 airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on FOX.

SCOTLAND
Dutch-Iranian artist Exhibit Includes Works Made from Ship Matches

Navid Nuur biggest UK show to date challenges common perceptions of contemporary art. RENDERENDER includes works such as When doubt turns into destiny (1993 – 2011), a cat and mouse surveillance video in which the artist attempts to evade the security lights installed in Berlin’s alleyways and courtyards; City Soil (2009 – 2014) a 1,100 litre street bin filled with the ashes of the rubbish resulting from the creation of the exhibition; and a wall painting showing the weather system during the installation made with the ash from the contents of 2,500 boxes of Ship Matches.

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Born in Tehran, Navid Nuur lives and works in the Hague. He studied at Piet Zwart Institute, Rotterdam and Plymouth University. Nuur has shown internationally with exhibitions at the Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Kunsthalle, St. Gallen; and Parasol Unit, London.
 Through June at Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) in Dundee City in Scotland.
www. Dca.org