Ramin Bahrani

Ramin Bahrani

Fellow: Awarded 2009
Field of Study: Film

Competition: US & Canada

Born in North Carolina in 1975 and raised there, Ramin Bahrani is a writer, director, and editor of feature fiction films who received his B.A. in film studies from Columbia University in New York City. He made several short films culminating in Backgammon (1998) before moving to his parents’ homeland of Iran for three years where he made his student thesis film, Strangers (2000). Mr. Bahrani then spent some time in Paris before returning to the States to begin work on his first feature film, Man Push Cart.

Man Push Cart (2005) premiered at the Venice International Film Festival (2005) and later screened at the Sundance Film Festival (2006) and New Director’s New Films Festival at  MoMA (2006). The film won over ten international prizes, including the FIPRESCI international critics prize in the London Film Festival (2005), before being released around the world to wide critical acclaim. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough Director Gotham Award (2006), and for three Independent Spirit Awards (2007), including Best First Film. Roger Ebert places it on his list of top ten films for 2006.

Ramin Bahrani’s second film, Chop Shop (2007), premiered at the 2007 Cannes International Film Festival, and then screened at Toronto Film Festival (2007) and the Berlin Film Festival (2008). Chop Shop was released worldwide to universal critical acclaim, winning several prizes including the Acura “Someone to Watch” Independent Spirit Award (2008) for Mr. Bahrani. In 2009 the film was nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Director. Chop Shop was on countless top ten lists for 2008, including those of critics Leonard Maltin and again Roger Ebert, who hailed it as a “Masterpiece!”

In 2008 Mr. Bahrani premiered his third film, Goodbye Solo, as an official selection of the Venice Film Festival and won the FIPRESCI international critics prize for Best Film. The film then screened at the Toronto Film Festival. Goodbye Solo will be released theatrically in the United States by Roadside Attractions in the spring of 2009 and globally shortly thereafter.

Ramin Bahrani will be the subject of several prestigious international retrospectives in 2009, including  ones at  MoMA in New York City, Harvard University, and the La Rochelle Film Festival in France.

Follow the links below to view Ramin Bahrani’s film trailers:

Goodbye Solo (2008)

Chop Shop (2007)

Man Push Cart (2005)

Follow the links to read the reviews of Ramin Bahrani’s film Goodbye Solo:

Kenneth Turan’s LA Times Goodbye Solo review.

A O Scott’s review of Goodbye Solo in the New York Times.

Roger Ebert’s review of Goodbye Solo in the Chicago Sun Times.

Follow this link to view a conversation about the film “Goodbye Solo” with Souleymane Sy Savane, Ramin Bahrani and Red West on Charlie Rose.

Profile Photograph by Hooman Bahrani,Vesic Photography.

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