Leila Hatami

Leila Hatami (; born 1 October 1972) is an Iranian actress. Regarded as amongst the finest actresses of Iranian cinema and one of the most prominent performers in the 21st century, she is recognized for her realistic acting in drama films; gaining international fame for her role as Simin in Academy Award-winning film A Separation, for which she received the Silver Bear for Best Actress.

Hatami made her film debut in the drama Kamalolmolk (1984) portraying Kamal-ol-molk. She played her first lead role in the drama Leila (1997) as a barren woman, for which she won the Diploma of Honor at the Fajr Film Festival and gained public attention. Her portrayal of a naive woman in Penniless (2009) earned her the Crystal Simorgh for Best Actress at the Fajr Film Festival, and she later won the award again for her portrayal of a disordered woman in Subdued (2017). She has also been nominated for the Crystal Simorgh for her roles in Sheida (1999), The Deserted Station (2002), Season Salad (2005), Forty Years Old (2010), A Separation (2011), The Orange Suit (2012) and Time to Love (2015).

Hatami won the Montreal World Film Festival Award for Best Actress for her performance in The Deserted Station (2002). She won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin International Film Festival for her performance in the drama A Separation (2011). In 2017, IndieWire praised her performance in the film as one of the best performances of the 21st century and considered Hatami deserved one Oscar Award for her performance in it. She received the Crystal Globe for Best Actress at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for her performance in The Last Step (2012). In 2012, she was appointed Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government. She has been included in the list of the most beautiful women in the Middle East by the website Wonderslist.

Early life

Leila Hatami was born on 1 October 1972, in Tehran, Iran, to influential Iranian director Ali Hatami and actress Zari Khoshkam. Leila first appeared in a film when she was 10,set in the times of the 19th century Iranian painter Kamal-ol-Molk. In it, she played the painter as a young boy. Then eight years later in 1992, she appeared in another one of her father’s films called Love-stricken where she played a blind princess. However she did not originally intend to pursue acting. In high school, she studied mathematical physics.

After finishing high school, she moved to Lausanne, Switzerland and started her studies in mechanical engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL). After two years Hatami changed her major to French literature. She completed her study of French. Then her father became ill and she went back to Iran. He died in 1996. That same year, she played her first adult role in drama Leila which was directed by film director Dariush Mehrjui. Her acting received praise both inside and outside of Iran.

Career Hatami played several small roles in her father's productions throughout her youth, including in the Hezar Dastan television series and the Kamalolmolk movie. Her first leading film appearance was the title role in the 1997 film Leila, directed by Dariush Mehrjui. She received the Diploma of Honor for Best Actress from the 15th Fajr Film Festival. Following this, she continued to act regularly in Iranian cinema.

She has starred in dozens of films, and has often garnered critical acclaim and accolades. For her performance in The Deserted Station (2002), she was nominated for the Fajr Film Festival Award for Best Actress and Hatami won the Best Actress Award at the 26th Montreal World Film Festival.

She has appeared in her husband's films as a director, Portrait of a Lady Far Away (2005) and The Last Step (2012). She also designed the sets and the costumes of The Last Step and, in addition to receiving the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Award for Best Actress for her performance, she received a nomination for the Crystal Simorgh Fajr Film Festival Award for Best Production Design and Costume Design for her work on the film.

In 2012, Hatami received international attention for her role in the critically acclaimed Asghar Farhadi film, A Separation, which won dozens of accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Her performance earned critical acclaim and various awards, including the Silver Bear Award for Best Actress at the Berlin Film Festival. IndieWire praised her portrayal as one of the best female performances of the 21st century.

In June 2017, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invited Hatami to become a member.

Judging at film festivals; cheek kiss controversy

In April 2014, she was announced as a member of the main competition jury at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. Whilst there, Hatami greeted 83-year-old Cannes Film Festival President Gilles Jacob with a kiss on the cheek, which is a common form of greeting in France. Iran's Deputy Culture Minister Hossein Noushabadi criticized her for this, saying:

I hope that those who attend international arenas as Iranian women would be careful about the chastity and dignity of Iranians so that the image of the Iranian woman is not tainted before the world. "If they respect Islamic norms and the national culture and beliefs of Iran, it would be a desirable thing for Iranian celebrities to go abroad, but if their presence lacks regard for social values and ethical criteria, the Iranian nation is not going to accept it.

Full list

2001 - Dubai Short Film Festival 2006 - 41st Karlovy Vary Film Festival – Main competition 2011 - Marrakech Film Festival 2011 - Deauville Film Festival 2012 - Rome Film Festival 2012 - Kastendorf Film Festival (Jury President) 2013 - Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival 2014 - 67th Cannes Film Festival – Main competition 2022 - Vesoul Film Festival of Asian Cinema (Jury President) 2022 - 79th Venice Film Festival – Main competition

Personal life Hatami married Ali Mosaffa, her co-star in Leila (1997) in 1998. They have two children: a son named Mani (born February 2007) and a daughter named Asal (born October 2008).

Beside her native Persian language she is fluent in French, English, and German.

Filmography

Film

Web

Television

Awards and nominations