Career
At the age of eight, she played in The Cyclist(1987) directed by her father, Mohsen Makhmalbaf the celebrated Iranian filmmaker. She left high school when she was 14 to study cinema in the Mohhmalbaf Film House for five years. At the age of 17, after directing two video productions, she went on to direct the movie The Apple. One year later, the 18-year-old director went on to become the youngest director in the world participating in the official section of the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. The Apple has been invited to more than 100 international film festivals in a period of two years, while going to the screen in more than 30 countries. In an interview at the London Film Festival in 1998, Samira Makhmalbaf stated that she felt that her film The Apple owed its existence to the new circumstances and changed atmosphere that prevailed in Iran as a result of the Khatami presidency. National Film Theatre, 12 November 1998.
"In 1999, Samira made her second feature film titled “The Blackboard” in Kurdistan of Iran, and for the second time was selected by the Cannes Film Festival to compete in the official section in 2000. She was granted the Special Jury Award. The Blackboard received many international awards including the “Federico Fellini Honor Award” from UNESCO and “Francois Truffaut Award” from Italy. The film was widely released across the world and more than two hundred thousand people watched the film in France alone."
Samira alongside other prominent director like Ken Loach, Shohei Imamura, Youssef Chahine, Sean Penn…. made one of the eleven episodes of the film “September 11”. The film was premiered at Venice International Film Festival in 2002.
The third feature by Samira Makhmalbaf titled “At Five in the Afternoon”, the first feature film shot in Afghanistan post Taliban. The film was selected for the competition section of Cannes Film Festival in 2003, receiving the Jury’s Special Award for the second time. In 2004, she was selected as one of forty best directors of the world by Guardian newspaper.
Samira Mohmalbaf has been the winner and nominee of numerous awards. She was nominated twice for Golden Palm of Cannes Film Festival for Panj é asr (At Five in the Afternoon) (2003) and Takhté siah (Blackboards) (2001). She won Prix du Jury of Cannes, for both films in 2003 and 2001 respectively. Samira Mohmalbaf also won UNESCO Award of Venice Film Festival in 2002 for 11.09.01 - September 11 and Sutherland Trophy of London Film Festival for The Apple in 1998. In 2003, a panel of critics at the British newspaper The Guardian named Makhmalbaf among the best 40 best directors at work today.
Since the Iranian Government did not give the permeation to shoot in Iran to her, Samira Makhmalbaf shot her last film in Afghanistan titled Two-Legged Horse in 2007. Her shooting in Afghanistan was disturbed by thrown of a bomb into her scene which resulted in severe injuries of 6 people. Despite all the difficulties she faced, Samira did not leave Afghanistan until she finished her film.
Samira Makhmalbaf has also participated as jury member in reputable film festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Locarno, Moscow,and Montreal.
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