contact: maaria.sayed@gmail.com

Maaria began by working as a writer for networks such as Discovery Channel, National Geographic, and Fox. Her shorts “Aabida” and “Chudala” screened at film festivals such as Raindance, Izmir Kisa, BFI Flare and

Busan and acquired by Amazon Prime (US) ShortsTV International, Tata Sky India. She was a delegate for Asia Peace Film Festival in Pakistan, supported by the UN. A special program dedicated to her short films was part of Ca Foscari Short Film Festival, 2019 in Venice. She won grants from Cineteca

Di Bologna (2019) and Sharjah Film Platform (2021) to make her next short films. Her work deals with loss, the passage of time, transformation, and the sexual and spiritual liberation of women from her background. Maaria is an alumnus of the Asian Film Academy 2016 (recipient of Dongseo Scholarship), Fajr Talent Campus 2017(recipient of the award for Best Story), Bucheon Fantastic Film School 2019,

Reykjavik Talent Lab 2017, Busan Asian Film School 2021, and London Film School.

FILMOGRAPHY:

• Unveiling Selma / 2022 / as a writer, and a co-director
• Ancora Non Lo So / 2021 / as a director
• Wai Guo Ren / documentary / 2018 / as a producer
• Cichlid / fiction / 2016 / as a co-direcor
• Chudala / fiction / 2016 / as a director 
• Aabida / fiction / 2013 / as a director

FESTIVALS & AWARDS:

Aabida:

• ImagineIndia / Barcelona, Spain / 2015 / Official Selection

• Indian Film Festival / Ireland / 2015 / Official Selection​
• Indian Film Festival / Stuttgart, Germany / 2015 /  Official Selection
• Women Voices Now / Los Angeles / 2014 /  Best Film Award
• Aligarh Film Festival / 2014 / Best Actress and Best Short Film Award
• Mumbai Women’s Int Film Festival / 2013 /  Best Short Film Award
• London Feminist Film Festival / UK / 2013 / Official Selection
• Smita Patil Short Film Festival / Pune, India / 2013 / Official Selection
• International Women’s Film Festival / Berkeley, USA / 2019

Chudala:

• Short to the Point / Romania, 2017 / January Short of the Month Award

• Crossing the Screen / UK, 2017 /  Official Selection
• All Lights India International Film Festival /  India, 2017 /  Honourable Mention for Best Short Film

​       –      Pankh Film Festival / India / 2018 / Official Selection

• BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival / UK /  2018 / Official Selection
• The Bush Film Series / New York, USA /  2019
• Immaginaria Film Festival / Rome, Italy / 2019 / Best Short Film Award
• Busan International Short Film Festival / 2021 / Afis Special Screening – Hub of Asia
• International Women Filmmakers Festival / Turkey /  2022 / Official Selection
• 20th Indian Film Festival / Los Angeles, USA / 2022 / Official Selection
• 16th Integrazione Film Festival /  Italy / 2022 / Official Selection
• Best of India Short Film Festival / UK, 2022 / Official Selection
• IFFSA Toronto / Canada / 2022 / Official Selection
• 23rd Lucania Film Festival / Italy / 2022 / Special Mention