New York Kurdish Film Festival

Co-Curator

New York University, New York

October 21 – 25, 2009

Co-curated at New York University, the first New York Kurdish Film Festival brought together a coalition of cultural and academic organizations to present the first festival in the United States dedicated to Kurdish cinema. The program showcased a diverse selection of feature films, documentaries, and shorts from across the Kurdish region and diaspora, highlighting emerging and established voices working across borders and political contexts.

In addition to film screenings—including the U.S. premiere of The Storm by Kazım Öz—the festival featured filmmaker panels and post-screening discussions with directors from Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and the diaspora. By bringing together filmmakers, scholars, and audiences, the festival created a platform for dialogue around Kurdish cultural production, identity, and the role of cinema in articulating histories and experiences often underrepresented in international film circuits.

Press,

“First Kurdish Film Festival in US Showcases Diaspora Culture,” Voice of America, November 7, 2009