Mehrdad Oskouie holds masterclass in 'Cinema Verite'

He discussed the topic "My Experiences in Approaching the Characters" at the master class.  

"The fact that the characters of documentaries become immortal is due to their great depth and layers in their characteristics. So we have to be able to show different layers of the desired character, which requires you to be able to communicate closely with the character," Oskouie added.

Oskouei has attended various international film festival studies programs including The Berlinale Talent Campus, The German Academy of Fine Arts, The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam Academy (IDFAcademy) as well as film workshop in France, England, Poland, Switzerland, the UAE and (Germany) under such esteemed filmmakers as Albert Maysles, Richard Leacock, Abbas Kiarostami, Frederick Wiseman, Ross McElwee, Werner Herzog, Wim Wenders, Anthony Minghella, Michel Chion, Amir Naderi, and Walter Murch.

The Visual Heritage Center of Iran was founded in 2011 by Oskouei along with the cooperation of researchers in various fields. The heritage's activities are centered on historical photographs and postcards of Iran.

In 2010, Oskouei received a lifetime achievement in documentary making from the Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association at the House of Cinema awards ceremony. In January 2015, The Gilan province Islamic Cultural Center awarded him for his archival research and pictorial history of their province.

Oskouei directed the Iranian Cultural Special Documentary Committee from 2004 until 2008. His film The Last Days of Winter was screened in France in 2013 and his latest film "starless dreams" was screened in France, England, Switzerland, United States, and Japan in 2017 and 2018. He was a founding member of the Institute of Anthropology and Culture, where he interviewed many prominent Iranian and foreign filmmakers and artists.

In 2016, Oskouei was awarded the Amnesty International Prize at the Berlinale (an award he shared with the festival's Golden Bear winner, Fire at Sea). He also had been honoring as the recipient of the festival's True Vision Award at True/False Film Fest in Missouri as the best documentary filmmaker of the year 2016.

Oskouei has been a judge at 130 renowned film festivals such as CPH Docs (Denmark), Jean Rouch international film festival (France), Krakov International Film Festival (Poland), Tehran international short film festival(Iran), and Cinema Verite international film festival (Iran), as well as being a cultural ambassador for the United Nation's humanitarian committee UCHA. Oskouei is also on the boards of; Iranian Short Film Association, Documentary Filmmakers of Iran, the National Iranian Photographers Association, European Documentary Network EDN, International Documentary Association IDA. 

He also teaches at film schools around Iran as well as being active in the Tehran Arts and Culture Association. 

Oskouei has been awarded many prizes. Here is a partial list; The icon from IDFA Netherlands, The Reva and David Logan Grand Jury Award & Full Frame Inspiration Award, Human right award in Berlin film festival, Icon for best film at Hot Docs festival/ Canada, Golden Dragon award best film, Kraków Festival, Best Documentary at Munich/Germany, Best film Documentary Festival Montreal/ Canada.

MH