Arian Vazirdaftari is a writer and director based in Germany. So far, he has made five short films and his debut feature film. His short film NOT YET (2016) won the Grand Prix for Best Fiction and the NETPAC Award at the 34th Busan International Short Film Festival, and his most recent short film, LIKE A GOOD KID (2018), premiered in the Cinéfondation Competition at the 71st Cannes Film Festival.

In 2022, his debut feature film as writer-director, WITHOUT HER (2022), premiered in the Orizzonti Extra section of the 79th Venice International Film Festival. It was later officially selected at festivals including Toronto (TIFF), Palm Springs, and Jeonju, and won the Best Genre Film Award at the 56th Hof International Film Festival.

That same year, he co-wrote another feature film, WORLD WAR III (2022), which won the Best Feature Film prize at the 79th Venice International Film Festival and was Iran’s official submission for the 2023 Academy Awards. Arian also participated in Berlinale Talents and the Script Station program in 2021, and he is currently developing his second feature film.