Helena Sawires
Actor
Helana Sawires is an Egyptian-Australian actress, based in Sydney. Born into a large, creative family of artists and musicians, she has always lived under the influence of, and in the world of the performing arts and crafts.
After graduating from Newtown High School of the Performing Arts in 2011, Helana travelled for a year through Africa and Europe where she gained much of her inspiration and insight into the human condition. In 2015, she trained under master acting coach Sam Schacht at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York. Soon after, she was cast as lead actress in Australian feature film Ali’s Wedding in the role of Dianne, directed by Jeffrey Walker. Her performance earned her nominations for Best Lead Actress at the AACTA Awards, Australian Film Critics Association Awards, and Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards. Months after filming, she returned to Melbourne to play another lead female role as Jomana in Samah Sabawi’s play Tales of a City By the Sea. The play toured nationally and to Malaysia, and was included in the Victorian school curriculum. It won two awards from Drama Victoria and was nominated for the Green Room award for Best Independent Theatre production. Helana’s most recent work is in highly acclaimed Australian Television series, STATELESS (2020), where she played the role of Rosna, a detainee Kurdish Freedom Fighter.
Festival Jury
Helena Sawires
Actor
Helana Sawires is an Egyptian-Australian actress, based in Sydney. Born into a large, creative family of artists and musicians, she has always lived under the influence of, and in the world of the performing arts and crafts.
After graduating from Newtown High School of the Performing Arts in 2011, Helana travelled for a year through Africa and Europe where she gained much of her inspiration and insight into the human condition. In 2015, she trained under master acting coach Sam Schacht at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York. Soon after, she was cast as lead actress in Australian feature film Ali’s Wedding in the role of Dianne, directed by Jeffrey Walker. Her performance earned her nominations for Best Lead Actress at the AACTA Awards, Australian Film Critics Association Awards, and Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards. Months after filming, she returned to Melbourne to play another lead female role as Jomana in Samah Sabawi’s play Tales of a City By the Sea. The play toured nationally and to Malaysia, and was included in the Victorian school curriculum. It won two awards from Drama Victoria and was nominated for the Green Room award for Best Independent Theatre production. Helana’s most recent work is in highly acclaimed Australian Television series, STATELESS (2020), where she played the role of Rosna, a detainee Kurdish Freedom Fighter.
Festival Jury
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We acknowledge Australia’s First Nations People as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land, and pay respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, upon whose Country the festival is based. We honour the storytelling and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia.
We acknowledge Australia’s First Nations People as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land, and pay respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, upon whose Country the festival is based. We honour the storytelling and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia.
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© Copyright 2025 | Persian Film Festival