DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHY - Shervin Kermani

A graduate of the Toronto Metropolitan University's film program, Shervin is an award winning Iranian-Canadian filmmaker whose films have been recognized at dozens of international festivals. His previous short films include Sofia, starring Art Hindle, Lawrence Dane and principal dancer of the National Ballet of Canada, Sonia Rodriguez. Sofia won "Best Short" at the Rome and Ojai film festivals, "Best Cinematography" at the enRoute film festival, and played at the Oscar-qualifying Montreal and Rhode Island film festivals. His short Eros was nominated for four Golden Sheaf Awards, and won "Best Cinematography" at the Future of Film Showcase. His short, Bibi's Dog is Dead, played at five Oscar-qualifying film festivals including the Palm Springs Shortfest, Uppsala Short Film Festival, and Indy Shorts Festival, was nominated for "Best Live Action Short Drama" and won "Best Performance in a Live Action Short Drama" at the 2025 Canadian Screen Awards. In 2024, Shervin was one of two Canadians selected to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime film accelerator with legendary director Werner Herzog, where he made Ramón Who Speaks to Ghosts with cinematographer Karla Reyes under Herzog's direct mentorship over 10 days on the Spanish island of La Palma. Ramón Who Speaks to Ghosts had its world premiere at TIFF in 2025 and was subsequently selected as one of TIFF's Canada's Top Ten Shorts.