ROYA SADAT
founder & President of Roya Film House Director, Writer & Producer
Roya Sadat is Afghanistan’s first female award-winning producer, director and writer. Since the fall of the Taliban regime 20 years ago, she has founded: ROYA Film House (“RFH”), the first Afghan woman owned film company established in 2003; Her films, produced under the Roya Film House banner, have won more the 50 international awards.
The annual Herat International Women's Film Festival, the first international film festival held inside Afghanistan where movies made by women filmmakers from all over the world have been screened; and
Roya Sadat was born in Herat, Afghanistan in 1983, during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. She has successfully brought touching stories about Afghan women to international film festivals after the fall of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan for the last two decades. She graduated from the Law and Politics Faculty of the University of Herat, Afghanistan and studied filmmaking at the Asian Film Academy of South Korea in 2006. She married Aziz Deildar, a Lecturer at Kabul University who is also a writer, actor and cinematographer. They have two children, Arsalan and Awesta.
In 2003, she directed her first award-winning film, Three Dots, which she had written while living under Taliban rule. She thus became a role-model female Afghan film and television producer and director, who successfully brought important and poignant human stories from Afghanistan to international audiences. Here films and television dramas fostered dialogues among Afghan audiences. Since 2004, she has been invited to many international film festivals where she has won dozens of awards for her movies, “Three Dots”, “Playing the Taar” and “A Letter to the President”, which was selected as the official entry from Afghanistan for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards.
With 20 years of experience in producing, writing and directing acclaimed films which told the stories of Afghans, especially of the women and other vulnerable groups who faced human rights abuses in Afghanistan, she has established herself as a pivotal figure in international film, television and human rights realms. In August 2021, the Taliban took over Afghanistan once again forcing Roya and her family to flee to the United States where they have resettled and plans to continue telling the story of Afghans in this critical period of the country’s history.
films
Sima's Song
90 min, 2023 Director-Co producer - Upcoming
The Sharp Edge of Peace,
Documentary film 2020-2023, Director and co-Producer - Upcoming
A letter to the President
(85min), 2017, Director, Producer
Playing the Taar
(45min), 2008, Director, Producer
Three Dots
(52min), 2003, Writer, Director, Producer
After Years of Struggle,
Documentary film2014, Director, Writer
Opera
A Thousand Splendid Suns,
Seattle Opera, Commission in 2021 for 2023/2024 Season
TV Series
Khat Sevom -TV Drama (Collaboration with Tolo TV) (2 Seasons – 24 Ep) – 2018 & 2019 – Director
Bahesht Khamosh - TV Drama in a collaboration with TOLO TV - 2009 till 2013
Raz-hay-en-Khana 2007-2009
Music Videos
Beautiful Beast, 2005, Director, Writer
KIMDAEJUNG Nobel Peace Film Award 2021
BBC-100 inspiring and influential women from around the world for 2021100 Women BBC WORLD -Roya Sadat
International Women of Courage Award, United States Department of State, 2018
Special Prize of the Jury, Wala International Film Festival, 2018
One Future Prize, Munich International Film Festival, 2018
New Hope Award, Malaysia International Film Festival & Malaysia (Golden Global), 2018
Special Mention, International Jury Award, Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema, 2018
Malaysia International Film Festival & Malaysia Golden Global Awards , New Hope Award 2018
Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema PRIX DU JURY LUCENE STANDARD-2018
Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema PUBLIC MENTION AWARD -2018
Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema INTERNATIONAL JURY MENTON -2018
Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema INTERNATIONAL JURY SPECIAL MENTION-2018
Top 10 Global Thinkers of the world, Foreign Policy, Washington DC, 2017
Alternative Oscar Award, Foreign Ministry of Nederland, 2017
Maiwand (Malili) medal, by Decree of President Ashraf Ghani, 2015. Its just a gold Medal I searched for link I can’t find
Special Mention, London Afghan Film Festival, 2015 I wrote to the festival director to send some link or more information actually it was afghan film festival
Special Prize (Secrets of this House/Raaz hai een Khana), Seoul Drama Festival, 2008
Best Script (Playing the Taar), United Nations, Year 2006
6 Award (Three Dots), Tolo TV Film Festival, 2006, 2007 its should find on TV archive
Selection (Three Dots), Festival des 3 Continents, 2005
Best Director (Three Dots), Ravzana Film Festival, 2004 Kabul in the below link some information about this prize https://www.bbc.com/persian/afghanistan/story/2004/09/040930_pm-afg-3dots
Bibi Khaddija Award, Women in Leadership and Business, Year 2015 https://wadsam.com/afghan-business-news/bibi-khadija-award-recognizes-afghan-womens-contribution-in-business-arena-232/?fbclid=IwAR2Pm6DNpWtAyUKVmpcv266wFQS-eajDqj0_ZctpTlp6JQBbC-zCJQrT3JI
Best TV Drama (Behesht Khamosh), RUMI Awards, Year 2013 the program launched in LosVegas should be some link of the show
Awards
Media/Press Coverage / Film Review, Interview
AFP
The New York Times
2017 Global Thinkers - Foreign Policy
United State Department of State - Women of Courage award
Los Angeles Times
Variety – Foreign Language Female Directors
Variety - Afghan Film Maker Roya Sadat Defies odds with her feature film
Variety - Oscar Entry
Hollywood Reporter
BBC Persian
Etilaatroz
Film Reviews
Sonntagsblatt
Huffington Post
Hollywood Reporter
News Line
RFI France
Al Jazeera
Variety
Screendaily
Women and Hollywood
Asian Cinema
RTS
India Live Today - Movies
News Line
IMOVIEZ Magazine
Busan Daily
Hankyoreh Daily
Joongang Daily
Hankook Ilbo
Busan Ilbo
News Naver
MY MOVIES.IT
The Wrap
Gold Derby
Asia in Cinema
Filmo.com
TOLONews
8AM
DW
Opera Review and other article - Interview 2021-2023
Columbia.com
News.Yahoo.com
The Wall Street Journal
Financial Times
Seattle Afghan Opera | | wandtv.com
Peranews,com
Brodadwayworld.com
Aopopera.com
Columbian.com
usnews.com
southseattlemeralworld
hayatlife.com
'A Thousand Splendid Suns' primed for its Seattle Opera premiere | KNKX Public Radio
Nam10
Classical Voice North America
The Daily (UW)
KIRO 7: “New Afghan opera written by Seattle-born composer”
Oregon ArtsWatch
OperaWire
The Seattle Times
Broadway World
Real Change
SGN
Musical America
Crosscut
Northwest Asian Weekly
Post Alley
Drama in the Hood
Eclectic Arts
At Seattle Opera, ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ burns brightly | Crosscut
‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ opera spotlights Afghan women
'A Thousand Splendid Suns' primed for its Seattle Opera premiere | KNKX Public Radio
Chairperson of Netpac Jury, Vesoul Film Festival, France, 2020
Chairperson of the Jury in Indian Language Section, Kolkata International Film Festival, India, 2019
Malatya International Film Festival, Turkey, Year 2015
Third Eye international Film Festival, India, 2011
International Human Rights International Film Festival, Afghanistan, 2008 and 2011
International Didar Film Festival, Tajikistan, 2008
International Kabul Film Festival, Afghanistan, 2007
Afghan Film Festival, Germany, 2006
Street Children Festival, Afghanistan, 2005
Member of International Jury
