Iran star actor to make directorial debut

 Iranian veteran actor Reza Kianian is set to make his directorial debut with a theatrical play featuring two famous cinema actors.

He will direct the play ‘Professional’ as his first directing endeavor featuring Bahareh Rahnama and Hedayat Hashemi.

The play is based on a work by famous playwright Dusan Kovacevic who was born in former Yugoslavia. It is concerned with collapse of communism in East Europe and its social aftermath, with an approach inclined to social comedy.

Kianian has already performed in a theatrical production based on the same play by Kovacevic. However, ‘Professional’ embodies a fresh reading of the playwright’s work.

‘Underground’ is a 1995 comedy-drama film directed by Emir Kusturica, with a screenplay co-written by the director and Kovacevic. The film has won the Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival.  

Kianian has won Crystal Simorgh for Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role for 'Glass Agency' (1997) and Best Male Actor for 'House on Water' (2001).

He was also nominated to receive the Crystal Simorgh of Fajr International Film Festival in 2015 for the Best Actor in a Leading Role for Kiumars Pourahmad’s ‘Where Are My Shoes?’ (2015).

AG/AG