Team

Yadolah Dodge was born in Abadan, Iran, and is a Swiss citizen. Along with a full-time position as Professor and Chair of Statistics at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland, he made three long documentaries: Turicum: Das ist Zurich (2014), Dear Son (2018) and So ein Theater (2019).

Martin Girod was born in Basel (Switzerland) and obtained his MA in theatre studies in Cologne (Germany). He had different activities in film programming, managing arthouse cinemas, film teaching and film journalism before becoming chief editor of Ciné-Bulletin, the monthly of the Swiss film professionals (1988-1993). In 1993 he was appointed co-director of the Municipal Filmpodium in the Department of the Mayor of Zurich. Retired he continued as programme curator for Filmpodium. He has participated in juries of several international festivals and contributed as a freelance film journalist to different newspapers and film periodicals.

Armin Apadana was born in Zurich in 1992. He also lives and works there as a graphic designer. The website & the design of the Iranian Film Festival is created by him. He is also responsible for content of the website.

Alexander Cyrus Poulikakos was born in 1993 in Illinois, U.S.A. He holds a MSc in architecture from ETH Zurich. He currently works as an architect alongside running his own design and research practice Bab Al Morpheus, which focuses on documenting and mapping contemporary space in a globalised world through its margins. He is the author of the book “Resurrecting Babylon” and his texts have been published by Trans Magazine and Saqi Books. His works on Iran have been exhibited at gta Exhibitions, Museum für Gestaltung Zurich and Espacio Gallery London.

Véronique Gray obtained her Bachelor of Art in history with honors from the University of Atlanta, USA; she went on to study journalism. She has been published in various magazines in Great Britain, Canada, France and the USA. As an entrepreneur, artist and Editor-in-Chief of Vivamost she lived in Berlin, Frankfort, Munich and now Zurich. As a journalist she writes, reports and critics on festivals in Switzerland and Germany. Véronique Gray is a Franco-Swiss citizen.

Dariusch Apadana, who is half Swiss and half Iranian, was born in Zurich in 1995. In his job as a product manager, he is responsible for launching and establishing various brands and products in Switzerland. With a degree in business administration and a background in marketing, he is responsible for the Iranian Film Festival’s social media presence.

Sara Walker completed her sports degree at the University of Bern and is passionate about her work as a social and circus educator. As managing director of Carpet Market Persepolis, she combines her cultural affinity with professional commitment. She also organizes Persian cultural events and has been a co-organizer of socio-cultural events in Zurich, including the Vorstandsounds Festival, Kids in Dance and Mix & Match.

After completing her studies in art history and film studies at the University of Zurich, Ivana Milenković works as a freelance artist, curator and cultural mediator. With her chosen medium of nail art, she initiated Hotmailhotnail in 2019 and moves on the margins of sectors, services, art and social-political commitment. Always with a social structure as her focus, she has created non-commercial projects and try-outs in the areas of film and conceptual art. In 2022, Ivana co-initiated the art and culture venue Babyangel.

Kaveh is a data scientist, film enthusiast and climate change expert with more than 10 years of experience. His experience ranges from Swiss health insurer, global sustainability consulting groups, and technical research institutes. Kaveh holds a PhD in Public Policy and Economics, a master’s degree in Management, Technology and Economics (MTEC), and a bachelor’s degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering. His education spans from ETH Zurich, Oxford, to Yale Universities.

Naghmeh Danesh Ashtiani, born in 1980 in Iran, has a master’s degree in cultural studies and has been an activist in art, culture and media for the last three decades. She has worked as an editor in various media platforms and outlets such as Jam-e-Jam, Arman, Tose’e, Mellat, Mehr, Saba, etc. Her background in the field of public relations includes activities at Art and Experience Cinema Institute, the Iranian Cinema Critics and Writers , the Great Festival of Iranian Cinema Critics and Writers association, the Docu-Night platform, the Iran Photo Biennale, the Press Festival, the Tehran Animation Biennale, etc. She was also a media consultant and public relations manager of dozens of films and series in Iranian cinema and television, including Yalda, Dasht-e Khamoosh, “Night, Interior, Wall”, Silent City, etc.

Born in Hamadan in 1974, Amin Jafari earned his diploma in graphic design from Tehran School of Art, then BA in Cinema in 2008 and Director of Photography from Iranian Cinema in the same year. From 2019, executive director of short films at Iran/Iranian Film Festival Zurich-Switzerland. Recent Films: Captain, directed by Mohammad Hamzei (Iran) 2023, Ropewalker Memoirs, directed by Hamed Rajabi (Iran) 2023, A Tale of Shemroon, directed by Emad Ale-Ebrahim-Dehkordi (Iran-France) 2022, 2 Awards, No Bears, directed by Jafar Panahi (Iran) 2022, 4 Awards & 7 Nominations, Summer With Hope, directed by Sadaf Forughi (Iran-Canada) 2022, 1 Award & 7 Nominations.

Neptune Ingwersen watches about 4 to 8 films a week, each morning at the press previews in cinemas around Geneva and attends various film festivals, thus reaching a number of approximately 300 plus films a year. She started writing on film with the Currents magazine in Hamburg, and then the Geneva Post daily and GVA magazine and other publications. She now writes a monthly column called AU CINEMA for The Courier magazine in Geneva and a weekly film column on LeNews.ch.

Saeed Pouresmaeili was born in Isfahan, Iran in 1967. He obtained his BFA in cinematography from Cinema and Theater Faculty of Art University and Filmmaking Diploma from Iranian Youth Cinema Society. His experiences in cinema expand over 25 years with directing of five short films, two television series and director of cinematography of The Voyage of the Men in Gray by Amir Shahab Razavian. Saeed Pouresmaeili has won more than five awards for cinematography in different Iranian Film Festival in his homeland.

Nina Khamsy is a Swiss-Iranian born in 1991. After her studies in Middle Eastern studies and anthropology at SOAS University of London and Oxford University, she has published on different aspects of Persian cultures and Iranian Cinema. She has recently joined the CineClubPersan in Geneva where the team shows Iranian films every two months at the Grutli Cinemas. She is currently a PhD researcher in anthropology as well as an amateur documentary filmmaker.