Kaweh Modiri
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Kaweh Modiri (born 1982, Iran)[1] is a Dutch-Iranian writer and filmmaker based in The Netherlands. He has written and directed the feauture films Bodkin Ras (2016) and Mitra (2021), both premiered at The International Film Festival Rotterdam.[2][3]
My Burglar and I (Mijn Inbreker en Ik)
Modiri was born in Iran during the Iran-Iraq war and moved to the Netherlands at age six. His half-sister Mitra was executed in Iran, which is the subject of his 2021 film with the same name.[4][5][6]
He studied Theatre Studies at the University of Amsterdam and graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in 2010.[7]
Modiri's graduation film Mijn inbreker en ik (My Burglar and I) was based on a burglary in which stolen personal video footage was later recovered and incorporated into the work. The film premiered at IFFR in 2011 and received the René Coelho Award.[8][9][10][11][12][13]
Bodkin Ras
Modiri wrote and directed his debut feature Bodkin Ras in 2016.[14][15][16] It combines elements of fiction and documentary filmmaking by casting non-actors from Forres, a town in Scotland, in a narrative about an Iranian fugitive's integration into the local community. The film was selected for the San Sebastián Film Festival and the BFI London Film Festival and won the FIPRESCI award at IFFR[17] and the "Making Way" Award at Netia Off Camera International Festival in Kraków, Poland.[18][19][20]
Mitra
His second feature Mitra is Dutch drama film from the year 2021. The film follows a Dutch-Iranian mother reflecting on the events surrounding her daughter’s execution after she is accused of involvement in political violence in Iran.[21][22][23][24] Mitra premiered in the Giornate degli Autori section at the Venice Film Festival in 2021.[25] It won the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award.[26][27]