2019 Asia Pacific Screen Lab Recipient
Sherwan Haji is a Kurdish filmmaker, writer and actor. Haji has graduated from the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Damascus. Haji played leading roles in several TV series for several TV channels in the Middle East. Haji moved to Finland in 2010 to continue his studies. He works as a filmmaker writer and actor. In 2012, he established a production company called Lion’s Line Ltd. and has worked as educator and he has produced documentaries, fiction movies, and art workshops. Haji moved to Cambridge, U.K. to continue his studies, in 2016 he has been awarded the degree of Master of Arts with distinction in Film & TV Production. Haji has been recently working as an Actor with the Finnish legendary filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki, Haji played the role of Khalid which is the main character in The Other Side of Hope (2017). Mr Haji was awarded as best actor at Dublin international film festival for his performance in the Other Side of Hope.
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After studying film production at Los Angeles City College and working as a boom operator, he came back to Japan and worked for car company Daihatsu Motor and trading company Mitsubishi Corporation for the next 10 years where he gained the international business skill. During that time, he continued studying screenwriting. In 2015, he produced feature film Yamamoto Eri becomes Recoverability Zero which won 2nd Grand Prix at New Directors Film Festival 2015.
He left the trading company after that and started his career as an independent film producer. In 2016, he produced feature film Eriko, Pretended which was a grant-recipient film of Cineastes Organization Osaka. It was screened at Osaka Asian Film Festival 2016 and won SKIP City Award at SKIP City International D-Cinema Festival 2016.
He is a participant of EAVE Ties That Bind 2016 and currently attending the International Film Business Academy of Busan Asian Film School in order to develop My Name is Laila to be directed by Sheron Dayoc and Quantum Suicide to be directed by Mikhail Red.
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Khanjan Kishore Nath is a new generation filmmaker from India. He did his M.Phill in Mass Communication from Rajiv Gandhi University and film making from Zee Institute of Media arts, Mumbai. He made few short films since his college days like The Quest (Surjya Sandhan), Twilight (Aporahno), The Horizon (Khuj), Waiting For, If, Saknoia (The River Flows) and more. All his films were screened various film festivals around the globe. His first feature film The Bicycle (Chor) was also selected for various film festivals. Pre-production of his second feature film Kukuha is going on.
Besides these, he is the festival director of Nagaon International Short and Documentary Film Festival (India) and working as the head of Cinemalay, a film society based in Assam.
View ProfileThe Asia Pacific Screen Academy expresses its respect for and acknowledgement of the South East Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of country, including the custodial communities on whose land works are created and celebrated by the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. We acknowledge the continuing connection to land, waters and communities. We also pay our respects to Elders, past and present. We recognise the integral role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and First Nations peoples continue to play in storytelling and celebration spaces.