Paliz Khoshdel

And The Football Aficionado. In 2022, he co-directed and co-produced The Football Aficionado, a documentary about Zahra Khoshnavaz, an Iranian football supporter who challenged restrictions on women entering football stadiums. The film had its world premiere in the Wide Angle section of the 27th Busan International Film Festival, where it won the BIFF Mecenat Award for Asian documentary.

• Name — Paliz Khoshdel • Native Name — پالیز خوشدل • Born — 25 November 1985 • Birthplace — Rasht, Iran • Occupation — Film director, producer, editor, cinematographer, painter • Years Active — 2006-present • Known for — Documentary and experimental filmmaking • Notable Works — The Football Aficionado Street Sultans Mutiny of Colours Makhoola Rises! • Awards — Mecenat Award – Busan International Film Festival (2022) Best Documentary – Madrid (2024) Best Sports Documentary – India (2023) • Website — https: paliz.art/ • Illustration — Paliz Khoshdel in 2011

Khoshdel began working as a documentary and experimental filmmaker in the late 2000s. DAFilms lists his early work as including Street Sultans and Mutiny of Colours, and credits him as producer of On Underground and Remission. His early work also included cinematography credits on documentary projects such as Asbe Chobi, Waltz for Tehran and I Am a Happy Actor, according to Iranian documentary and experimental-cinema listings. Street Sultans documents young parkour practitioners in Iran and follows their attempts to organize a festival in Tehran. The film's subject includes the obstacles faced by the parkour community while trying to hold a public festival in the city. DAFilms credits Khoshdel as a director, screenwriter, editor and cinematographer on the film. Mutiny of Colours focuses on street art and graffiti in Iran. Coverage of the project described it as following several Iranian street artists and discussing the social and legal pressures surrounding street art in the country. Artists connected with the project included CK1, Icy & Sot and Omet. On Underground is a documentary about two hip-hop dancers in Iran; Khoshdel produced and edited the film. Makhoola Rises! continued Khoshdel's documentary work around Makhoola. The film concerns the Iranian alternative-rock group as the band worked on its first album and sought to stage concerts in Rasht and Tehran. The Football Aficionado follows Zahra, a football fan in Tehran, and addresses the exclusion of women from Iranian football stadiums. The film was later distributed by Journeyman Pictures and screened at festivals including the Kerala International Documentary and Short Film Festival, Impact Human Rights Film Festival of Catalonia and the Iranian Documentary Film Festival Munich. In 2026, Khoshdel co-directed the short science-fiction film Centaur with Sharmin Mojtahedzadeh. The film follows a woman who discovers that her pregnancy and her husband are part of a controlled experiment involving artificial creation. The project was produced using generative tools from Google AI Studio. • Illustration — Paliz Khoshdel receiving an Athletic Club Bilbao jersey at the 2024 Thinking Football Film Festival in Bilbao, Spain.

• Year — Title — Role(s) — Notes • 2009 — Ancient Heritage — Director, editor, Cinematographer — Short Documentary • 2010 — Street Sultans — Director, writer, editor, cinematographer, producer — Documentary about parkour in Iran. • 2011 — Asbe Chobi — Editor, Cinematographer — Short Documentary • 2011 — Waltz for Tehran — Cinematographer — Documentary about Street Music in Tehran. • 2012 — On Underground — Producer, editor — Documentary about two hip-hop dancers in Iran; listed by DAFilms in Khoshdel's filmography. • 2013 — Better Than Life — Producer, editor, Cinematographer — Documentary about Video Game industry • 2015 — Without Ticket — Editor — Listed by Cinema Verite. • 2017 — Mutiny of Colours — Director, producer, editor, cinematographer — Documentary about Iranian street art. • 2017 — Watching the Other — Editor — Short documentary. • 2018 — Simulation of Mr. Yellow — Editor — Listed by Cinema Verite. • 2019 — I Am a Happy Actor — Cinematographer — Listed by Cinema Verite. • 2019 — Apnea — Director, producer, editor, Cinematographer — Experimental short. • 2022 — The Football Aficionado — Director, producer, editor, cinematographer — Winner of the BIFF Mecenat Award at the 27th Busan International Film Festival. • 2023 — Re/Cinema — Producer, editor — Short Documentary. • 2024 — Makhoola Rises! — Director, producer, editor, Cinematographer — Documentary. • 2024 — The Scar — Producer, editor, VFX — Feature film directed by Moein Rezaei Rad; FilmFreeway lists Khoshdel among the producers. • 2026 — Centaur — Director, Producer, editor — Short, Ai Movie • Middle of Middle East — Editor, producer — Documentary.