Saeed Roustaee (Persian: سعید روستایی, born August 14, 1989), also spelled Saeed Roustayi, is an Iranian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer. His works primarily focus on issues of social injustice, as well as his portrayals of women in Iranian society.
His second feature, Just 6.5 (2019), was nominated for the César Award for Best Foreign Film. His third and fourth films, Leila's Brothers (2022) and Woman and Child (2025), were selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022 and 2025, respectively.
In June 2025, Roustayi was invited to join the Directors Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Early life He graduated from Soore University with a Bachelor of Film and Television in Directing.
Career Life and a Day is his first major cinematic work. At the Fajr International Film Festival, Roustayi won 2 Crystal Simorghs for best directing and best screenplay. He received the 2016 Reflet d'Or for Best Feature at the Geneva International Film Festival Tous Ecrans.
2023 imprisonment His third feature film Leila's Brothers competed in the 2022 Cannes Film Festival where it won the FIPRESCI Prize for films screened in the main competition section.
In August 2023, the Islamic Revolutionary Court sentenced Roustayi to six months in prison for entering Leila's Brothers in the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, claiming that the film participated in "the opposition’s propaganda against the Islamic system". Roustayi alleged that Iran's Ministry of Culture had requested a series of scene changes to Leila's Brothers which he had refused to implement. Roustayi is due to serve nine days of his sentence and a suspended period of five years, as well as participating in other punitive measures such as completing a course on "creating movies aligned with national interests and national morality".
Filmography
Feature films YearEnglish titleOriginal titleNotes 2016Life and a Dayابد و یک روز 2019Just 6.5متری شیش و نیمWorld premiere at the 76th Venice International Film Festival 2022Leila's Brothersبرادران لیلاWorld premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival 2025Woman and Childزن و بچهWorld premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival
Other credits YearTitleDirectorWriterProducerNotes 2011SaturdayShort film 2012Ceremony 2014The Very Uncrowded Street 2017Blockage
Awards and nominations Award Year Category Nominated Work Result Cannes Film Festival2022Palm d'OrLeila's Brothers FIPRESCI PrizeCitizenship PrizeChicago International Film Festival2019Best New DirectorJust 6.5César Awards2022Best Foreign FilmJust 6.5Entrevues Film Festival2020Grand Prix Just 6.5Fajr Film Festival2016Best DirectorLife and a DayBest ScreenplayBest First Director2019Best DirectorJust 6.5Best ScreenplayFEST International Film Festival2020Best FilmJust 6.5Hafez Awards2016Best DirectorLife and a DayBest Screenplay2019Best DirectorJust 6.5Best Screenplay Iran Cinema Celebration 2016Best Director Life and a DayBest Screenplay2019Best DirectorJust 6.5Best ScreenplayIran's Film Critics and Writers Association2016Best DirectorLife and a DayBest Screenplay2020Best DirectorJust 6.5Best ScreenplayMunich International Film Festival2022Best International FilmLeila's Brothers Nahal Short Film Festival2013Best Fiction Short FeatureCeremonyTokyo International Film Festival2019Best DirectorJust 6.5Grand PrixVenice International Film Festival2019Best Feature Film – HorizonsJust 6.5Zurich Film Festival2019Best International Feature Film Just 6.5Special Mention – International Feature Film
References
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