FILM
Documentary Filmmaking
Environmental documentary, poetic nonfiction, research, visual storytelling, field production, and directing.
Environmental Doc • Non-Fiction • Storytelling
ART • EDUCATION • CINEMA • THEATRE
Professor. Filmmaker. Theatre Artist.
Teaching artistic practice through cinema, theatre, method acting, documentary storytelling, and cultural research — connecting academic rigor with professional creative work.
3Art degrees across leading universities
Film + TheatreProfessional creative practice
ResearchActing, sociology of art & environmental film
ABOUT THE PROFESSOR
An interdisciplinary artistic and academic practice.
Mohammad Saleh Soltani Sarvestani is an Iranian-American poet, writer, professor of the arts, filmmaker, theatre artist, and researcher. His work moves between education and production, combining performance, cinema, literature, and cultural research.
“Students should not only study art — they should learn how to think, create, perform, direct, and tell stories through practice.”
His academic path includes the University of Tehran, Tarbiat Modares University, and American University. His teaching and creative practice spans acting, directing, documentary filmmaking, producing, storytelling, environmental cinema, and the sociology of art.
His documentaries Pistachio (2023) and Saffron (2024) were screened at the Doyle Forman Theater at American University in Washington, D.C. His artistic and literary book Thirst in the Water was nominated for Iran's Book of the Year Award.
American UniversityTarbiat Modares UniversityUniversity of TehranFilm & Media ArtsMethod Acting
LEARN WITH PROFESSOR SOLTANI
Courses built around creative practice.
Designed for students, emerging artists, actors, filmmakers, and institutions seeking practice-based instruction, guest lectures, workshops, or academic collaboration.
ACTING
Method Acting
Role development with a focus on Stella Adler, realistic theatre, character research, and the social world of performance.
Stella Adler • Realism • Achieving the Role
DIRECTING
Directing & Producing
From concept and script to actor direction, visual strategy, production planning, and finished screen work.
Directing • Producing • Screen Practice
STORY
Storytelling for Film & Theatre
Narrative structure, poetic storytelling, adaptation, visual language, performance, and audience engagement.
Narrative • Screenplay • Performance
THEORY
Sociology of Art
A research-based approach to performance and artistic practice, including Pierre Bourdieu and cultural analysis.
Bourdieu • Performance Studies • Research
INSTITUTIONS
Guest Lectures & Workshops
Available for universities, film programs, theatre departments, cultural organizations, and student groups.
Campus Visit • Workshop • Collaboration
WATCH ONLINE
Films & cinematic work.
Trailers and films play directly inside this website. The viewing experience stays on the portfolio site rather than sending the audience to a separate video page.
2023 • FEATURE DOCUMENTARY
Pistachio
A poetic environmental documentary exploring landscape, human experience, and the cultural ecology surrounding pistachio.
2024 • SHORT DOCUMENTARY
Saffron
2026 • POETIC SHORT FILM
DC Driver
A poetic short film project connecting urban experience, movement, and cinematic observation.
THEATRE & PERFORMANCE
Stage work, acting, and dramatic research.
Selected performances and productions across university, experimental, and professional theatre — with available YouTube playlists opening inside the site.
2015–2016
The Zoo Story
Starring role. University of Tehran Theatre / Molavi Hall. Connected to research on Jerry, human habits, and Pierre Bourdieu.
2017
Question about the Paranoid Murder of Pedram Epidemic
Dramatic play presented in Tehran, including Book Land / Cube Theater.
2018–2019
A Life in the Theatre
Starring role in productions presented at Molavi Hall, Houdy Hall, and Tarbiat Modares University.
ACADEMIC & PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
Selected CV.
A concise view of education, teaching, publications, awards, and selected acting/directing credits. Detailed references are available privately on request.
Education
2023
MFA — Film & Media Arts (Environmental Film), American University
Film and Media Arts, Washington, D.C.
2019
MFA — Acting Studies, Tarbiat Modares University
Research focus: achieving the role through method acting.
2015
BFA — Theatre, University of Tehran
Professional and academic training in theatre and performing arts.
Selected Publications & Research
2019
Achieving the Role by Stella Adler’s Acting Method
Analysis through Pierre Bourdieu’s sociology; Journal of Fine Arts, Performing Arts and Music, University of Tehran.
2018
Relationship and Non-Relationship in Forming Human Habits
A sociological analysis of Jerry in Edward Albee’s The Zoo Story, with a focus on Pierre Bourdieu.
2017
War and Humanity
A comparative analysis of metamorphosis in twentieth-century French literature.
2011
Thirst in the Water
Book published in Tehran; later nominated for Iran’s Book of the Year Award.
Selected Awards & Recognition
First Place — Academic ThesisTarbiat Modares University, 2019
Best Academic Thesis Grant2018
Elite ScholarshipNational Postgraduate Entrance Examination, 2016
Second Place — National Mehr Festival2012
National Elite Foundation of IranMember
International Youth Kharazmi FestivalDrama Research, 2009–2011
Best Actor — Hamseda FestivalUniversity of Tehran, 2010
Best Poet — World Poetry DayFoundation for Persian Studies Association, 2010
Selected Screen & Stage Credits
FILM
Maybe
Director / Strategy Producer — 2020
The Librarian Man — Starring Role — 2019
Injection — Starring Role — 2018
The Girl’s House — Supporting Role — 2014
TELEVISION
Television
Reminder — Supporting Role — iFilm — 2015
Magical Alphabet — Assistant Director — IRIB2 — 2012
STAGE
Selected Theatre
A Life in the Theatre • The Zoo Story • American Buffalo • Hello and Goodbye • Student Dormitory • Bus Terminal
ARTISTIC LIFE
Cinema, culture, place, and observation.
Selected photographs from the artist’s creative and cultural journey in the United States, used here as visual context rather than as formal production stills.
Studio & Film Culture
A continuing engagement with film history, professional production environments, and screen culture.
Hollywood
Washington, D.C.
TEACHING • MEETINGS • UNIVERSITY OPPORTUNITIES
Study, collaborate, or invite Professor Soltani.
Students can request private or group training. Universities and cultural organizations can inquire about faculty opportunities, guest lectures, workshops, screenings, and creative collaborations.
Soltanihanif@gmail.com