Legendary Filmmaker and Playwright Bahram Beyzaie Passes Away at 87
According to Cinemadrame News Agency, the legendary cinema and theater director and author, Bahram Beyzaie, has passed away at the age of 87. The Stanford Iranian Studies Program confirmed the filmmaker’s passing via Instagram.
The statement reads: “He passed away on his 87th birthday: December 26 (5th of Dey), a day designated as Playwright’s Day in honor of his birth (and the passing of Akbar Radi); five years after his epic and brilliant effort to complete the text of Dash Akol According to Marjan.”
“He often said that his homeland and creed were the world of culture. He possessed a profound love for Iran, and despite the prejudices against him and his family, he never ceased uplifting and preserving Iran’s cultural heritage. Our university will soon hold a memorial to honor the life and works of this peerless patriot and scholar of Iranian studies.”
“The Stanford Iranian Studies Program is especially grateful to Mozhdeh Shamsai, without whose empathy and companionship Beyzaie’s life in these years would have been of a different color. To quote the Shahnameh, which Beyzaie lived within for a lifetime: ‘If death is justice, then what is injustice?'”
Over four decades of filmmaking, Beyzaie directed enduring masterpieces such as “Downpour” (Ragbar), “Stranger and the Fog”, “Travelers”, and “The Ballad of Tara”. Following the revolution, he made six feature films in Iran before immigrating to the United States in 2010 (1389).
Beyzaie leaves behind a legacy of over 100 books and articles. As a screenwriter, he penned acclaimed works like “The Day of Fate” (Rooz-e Vaghe’e) and “Red Line”. Earlier this year, the Venice Film Festival screened “Bashu, the Little Stranger” and honored him with the award for Best Restored Film.
