Directors Masterclass with Ali Abbasi

Saturday 12 July | 10:00 – 13:00 | Ballroom 3, The Galmont Hotel

Born in Iran and based in Denmark, Ali Abbasi’s fourth feature The Apprentice premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival — his third Cannes selection—and was nominated for two Oscars, two Golden Globes, three BAFTAs, and three Independent Spirit Awards. A coproductionwith Ireland’s Tailored Films, Donald Trump attempted to block the release of the film which explores the President’s early career. His previous feature, Holy Spider, also premiered in Competition at Cannes, where Zar Amir-Ebrahimi won Best Actress; it earned
four European Film Award nominations. Abbasi’s second feature, Border, won the Un Certain Regard Award at Cannes in 2018, received an Oscar nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and was nominated for six European Film Awards, winning for Best Visual Effects. In television, he directed the final two episodes of HBO’s acclaimed The Last of Us, season one. Abbasi studied architecture in Stockholm before attending the National Film School of Denmark. He is currently represented by UTA in the U.S. and LARK in the UK.