Zahra Shahhatami

Zahra Shahhatami is an Iranian writer and director. She was born in 1987 in Tehran, Iran. She is known as the creator, writer, and director of the short film "Umbra: The dark central part of a sunspot" for which she was selected by multiple festivals and received the 2019 Silver and Bronze Awards at the Independent Shorts Awards international film festival in the categories of Best Microfilm and Best Experimental Short. Shahhatami began writing short and feature films at a very young age. With just 11 years she wrote her first short film and at age 15 her first feature. Zahra worked with her father Ali Shahhatami, a well-known Iranian director, who produced her second feature screenplay "Flight of Ducks" at 18. In 2014 she directed her first film, a 100 second film titled "Libertad." Following her move to the United States, she wrote, directed, and produced "Disenthralled" and "Umbra." Her work is centered around women's rights and human rights. Shahhatami's debut feature film "There's No Rain in Hell" tells the story of a small community of innocent civilians living inside a besieged plant during a war. The film is awaiting release.