Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the House of Cinema

A high ranking delegation of the members of the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has arrived in Tehran for a 10 day visit, hosted by the Iranian Alliance of Motion Picture Guilds (House of Cinema).

According to House of Cinema’s Managing Director Mohammad Mehdi Asgarpour, the prominent executives and Oscar winning/nominated filmmakers of the delegation are:

 Syd Ganis: President of the AMPAS (2005-Present), Producer (Big Daddy, Mr. Deeds, The Master of Disguise, Akeelah and the Bee)
 Ellen Harrington: Academy’s Director of Exhibitions and Special Events; One of the Founders of the AMPAS Media Literacy Program
 Tom Pollock: Film Producer, Chair of MCA/Universal’s Motion Picture Group. More than 200 films have been made during his tenure, including Jurassic Park, Born on the Fourth of July, In the Name of Father and Apollo 13.
 Annette Bening: Member of the AMPAS Board of Directors, Actress (Valmont, Postcards from the Edge, The Grifters, Guilty by Suspicion, Regarding Henry, Bugsy, Richard III, Mars Attacks!, In Dreams, American Beauty, Being Julia, The Women)
 William Horberg: Member of the AMPAS Board of Directors, Independent Producer (The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Quiet American, Cold Mountain, The Kite Runner)
 Frank Pierson: Member of the AMPAS Board of Directors, Writer & Director (Films as Writer: Cat Ballou, Cool Hand Luke, Dog Day Afternoon)
 James Longley: Documentary Filmmaker (Portrait of Boy with Dog, Gaza Strip, Iraq in Fragments, Sari’s Mother)
 Phil Robinson: Member of the AMPAS Board of Directors, Writer & Director (All of Me, In the Mood, Field of Dreams)
 Alfre Woodard: Actress (Remember my Name, HealtH, Down in the Delta, Cross Creek, Love & Basketball)

Announcing the scheduled programs, Asgarpour said: “A number of seminars are to be held on Sunday March 1st and Tuesday March 3rd on different subjects including acting, writing and directing, documentary filmmaking, producing, and marketing and film distribution. In addition, the visiting filmmakers will meet with the board of directors of the House of Cinema to discuss plans for future joint programs. Academy members will also attend meetings with the directors of member guilds and associations, and members of the workgroup responsible for compiling the regulations of Iran Cinema Celebrations. Visits to a college of cinema, Film Museum of Iran and some other film related sites are also in the schedule.”

Asgarpour further added: “The press conference attending the visiting filmmakers will be held on Saturday March 7th, at the House of Cinema’s Convention Hall.” 

One of the objectives of the 10 day event is to promote the House of Cinema’s cultural and educational development plans, which are in line with the Academy’s International Outreach Program. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently begun a program in which groups of prominent U.S. filmmakers are sent to different countries to increase communication among film artists and with audiences around the world. In 2007, the program was initiated in Vietnam, and this year the Academy’s International Outreach Committee has selected Iran as their second destination.