UCLA-CNES Bilingual Lecture Series on Iran
LADY
OF THE ROSES
A Documentary Film (With English subtitles)
Followed by a Panel Discussion (Bilingual)
Sunday November 14, 2010, 5:00PM - 8:00PM
Dodd Hall, 148, UCLA
Synopsis
Directed by Mojtaba Mirtahmasb (2008, Iran), "Lady of the Roses" is the name given to late Shahindokht Sanati, a woman who went to Lalehzaar region of Kerman before the Islamic Revolution, and replaced poppies fields with roses gardens and opium with rosewater and took this so far as transforming the agricultural destiny of a whole region. The story is told by Homayoun Sanati, Shahindokht's spouse and three years after her death. He is the founder of "Franklin Publishing," "Offset printing house," "Pars Paper Co.," etc. and who, as a whole, is considered a one-of-kind figure in Iran's culture, industry and entrepreneurship.
The late
Shahindokht Sanati
Jadid
Online's
story
on Lady of Roses
Panelists:
Zahra Dowlatabadi, Executive Producer of the film Lady of the Roses, Documentary filmmaker and Animation Producer
Mahasti Afshar, Executive Director, Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA)
Farideh Hatami, Program Staff, the California Endowment
Moderator: Nayereh Tohidi, Professor, CSUN
Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Director, Producer of
Lady of the Roses
He was born in 1971 and graduated with a B.A. at Art University, Tehran, Iran.
In 1995, Mirtahmasb began his career as a sound technician and documentary
filmmaker. In 1996, he made a short documentary entitled, "Sign." Some of his
other documentaries include "The River Still Has Fish", "Off Beat", "Back Vocal"
and "Home Is in Our Past". Mirtahmasb is also the acting Chair of the Iranian
Documentary Film Association.
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Zahra Dowlatabadi
is an award winning animation
producer and also a documentary
filmmaker. Dowlatabadi holds an MA in Film from USC and a BA in English
Literature and Film from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Her
passion for empowering children to become agents of social change continues to
guide her work. She is the executive producer of the film Lady of the Roses.
Mahasti Afshar joined the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA)
as Executive Director in 2010 where she is focused on engaging youth, connecting
the community, and enhancing its voice in the democratic process. Since earning
a PhD at Harvard in Sanskrit and Indo European Folklore and Mythology (1988),
she has held executive positions at some of America's nonprofit institutions,
including the Getty Conservation Institute, the Los Angeles Philharmonic
Association. Dr. Afshar has produced award-winning exhibitions, documentaries,
virtual reality galleries, and books. Her career began in 1968 at the National
Iranian Radio and Television and continued at the Shiraz/Persepolis Arts
Festival until 1978 when the religious establishment forced it to shut down. She
also holds an M.A. from Harvard University and has diplomas in film and
Television production from the BBC, London, and ORTF, Paris (1968-69).
Farideh Hatami, has extensive experience working in non-profit sector and
is currently working as program staff for The California Endowment and provides
support to projects designed to improve the health of low income communities in
California. Her passion to work with underserved youth population led her to get
involved in policy work and propose a senate bill to improve the ability of
youth in probation, to better communicate with their children. Farideh, a
resident of Los Angeles, received her B.S. in Computer Sciences, and her Masters
from CSUN, School of Public Health.
Shahindokht Sanati's
resting place