New Page: Theater Directing Masterclass

Directors: Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, Mehdi Ganji/ Project Investor and Advisor: Pejman Danaei/ Researchers: Hadis Rahmani, Mehdi Ganji/ Research Advisor: Hamid Pourazari/ Art Director: Amir Esbati/ Editor: Hamila Moayed/ Director of Photography: Shahram Najarian/ Sound Recordist: Farid Pirayesh/ Music: Reza Mortazavi/ Sound Designer and Mixer: Amirhossein Ghasemi/ Graphic Design and Execution: Mehdi Ganji/ Image Coloring: Hamidreza Fatourechian, Barna Jamshidi (Zedenoor Studio)/ Trailer: Hamila Moayed/ Photography: Mostafa Qaheri/ Line producer: Sadaf Sadeghianpour/ Assistant Directors: Sadaf Sadeghianpour, Hadis Rahmani/ Camera Crew: Sajjad Karimi, Alireza Yazdani/ Assistant Stage Manager: Hedieh Idloo/ Assistant Editor: Mehrnoush Vesali/ Assistant Sound Designer: Mahoor Mirshakkak/ Production and Logistics Team: Ali Karimi, Shaban Moradzadeh/ Producer: Mojtaba Mirtahmasb/ Produced at: "Kara Film Studio"

Introduction of the Course Instructor, Ali Raffi

Ali Raffi, born on January 11, 1939, in Isfahan, is a director, set and costume designer, writer, and theater and cinema actor.

He continued his studies up to the diploma level in Isfahan and in 1957, he was granted a sports scholarship and went to France. However, an injury and leg fracture while skiing in the Alps in 1960 redirected his life.

He earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Sociology from the University of Sorbonne. After a chance encounter with a film company, he entered the field of acting. Rafie attended acting courses at Charles Dullin's acting school in Paris, gaining experiences in theater, television, and cinema acting. Subsequently, he worked as an assistant director at the National Theater of France. He continued his studies at the Sorbonne, completing his Bachelor's, Master's, and PhD in Theater Studies.

Raffi returned to Iran in 1974 and began teaching at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Tehran. In 1976, he was appointed as the head of City Theater of Tehran. Some of his works during that period include "Antigone," "A Cloakroom Attendant’s Memories and Nightmares of the Life and Assassination of Mirza Taghi Khan Farahani," "Whimper and Entreaty at the Great Wall of the City," and "Crime and Punishment." In 1978, after resigning from the head of City Theater of Tehran, he worked as the head of the Drama Department at the University of Tehran. After the revolution, he went to France and returned to Iran in 1990, resuming his artistic activities.

His works include plays like "Memory of Sand Years," "A Memorable Day with Scientist Woo," "Blood Wedding," "Romeo and Juliet," "Shazde Ehtejab," "The Maids," "Never snows in Egypt," "Fox Hunting," "Yerma," "A Cloakroom Attendant’s Memories and Nightmares of the Life and Assassination of Mirza Taghi Khan Farahani," and "The House of Bernarda Alba," as well as two films, "Fish Fall in Love" and "Mr. Yusef."

He has received numerous awards for his work, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the 18th Hafez Festival (2018) and the Best Stage Play of the Year Award from the 18th Annual Festival of Critics, Writers, and Researchers of the Theater House for the play "The House of Bernarda Alba" (2019).