Past event
Film Screening with Iranian Filmmaker Zahra Ahooei
About the event
Join Iranian filmmaker Zahra Ahooei, for a screening and conversation about her award-winning short films and her current documentary project, HouseLight.
FREE (by Ticket only): ZAHRA AHOOEI OCAD FILM SCREENING TICKETS
October 1, 2026 6:30-8:00pm OCAD University, 100 McCaul Street Auditorium (Room 190)
Zahra Ahooei is an Iranian filmmaker, writer, and media artist currently based in Canada. She has directed several short narrative films, including Reflex (2024), Prestige (2020), Sign Out (2017), and Extra Time (2015), which have been screened internationally and recognized with various awards. Her background also includes years of experience in journalism, television writing, and content creation for both broadcast and digital platforms.
Zahra’s upcoming project, HouseLight, is a feature-length documentary that employs a non-fiction storytelling approach. Rooted in her personal experiences, the film explores themes of loss, memory, and immigration through a distinctly female perspective. In 2024, Zahra developed this project during her participation in the Newcomer Filmmentor program at the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT).
She is currently an IIE Artist Protection Fund Fellow in residence at OCAD University, which acts as the primary host and creative hub for the development and production of her ongoing film project. As part of this fellowship network, OBORO, an artist-run centre in Montreal dedicated to the presentation and production of visual, media, and digital arts will also host Zahra during the later stages of the project in collaboration with APF and OCAD University.
In November 2025, while still in development, HouseLight was selected to participate in Doc Lab Montreal ’s feature film program, part of Forum RIDM, the industry platform of the Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM), one of North America’s leading documentary events fostering creative exchange, professional development, and international co-productions.
