Maani Petgar

Biography

Born in Tehran, Iran, November, 1959. After running a Photography Studio, (1980-82), he started working in the film industry with Amir NADERI, in The Runner (1982-83) and Water, Wind, Dust (1985) as stills photographer, assistant director and assistant editor. After working in The Key (Dir. Ebrahim Forouzesh), he migrated to Australia and between 1988 to 1990 worked in the Australian Film Industry in various positions, until he made his first experimental short, Reverse Angle in 1991. In 1994, he returned to Iran to make a documentary on Iranian cinema for SBS TV in Australia and Farabi Cinema Foundation in Iran, but for some reasons, that project was never executed, and instead Cinema Cin- ema was made and Film Lovers, were initiated. He has returned to live and work in Iran since 1997 and planned two feature films in Iran. The first project: Looking Through, is recently completed. He has established his own production houses; Reverse Angle Productions, between 1996-2002 in Australia and Unexposed Films in Iran- since 2004. He is also a part time film critic and collaborator on Film Monthly magazine (in Farsi), and Film International (Quarterly in English, published in Iran), since 1986.

Jury Members

Member - FEATURE FILMS - 2012