Noori Pictures is one of the world’s leading independent companies both as production and international distribution of mainly Iranian and Afghan documentaries and feature films.
Since its foundation in 2012, the films represented by Noori Pictures have either been shortlisted in the most prestigious film festivals or received numerous awards. The company is very much open to collaborations with more talented filmmakers and co-producers around the world and it aims to find the best ways of showcasing and distributing its films on a global scale.

Biography of Katayoon Shahabi

Katayoon Shahabi has a PhD in French literature. In 1985, she started her work as a film promoter in “Farabi Cinema Foundation” (FCF), which had the important role of introducing Iranian Cinema to the world. During this period, she worked with well-known filmmakers such as Abbas Kiarostami, Bahram Beizaei, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, etc. In 1994, she co-founded “Cima Media International (CMI)”, a semi-private company that produced and marketed Iranian films and television productions. Her activity in this company allowed her to gain experience in co-producing successful documentaries and feature films. She also organized the first TIM (Tehran International Market) in 1995.

In 2001, she launched her own private company, “Sheherazad Media International (SMI)”, which rapidly gained a reputation for its keen eye to discover new talented directors, such as Asghar Farhadi, Mohammad Rasoulof, Behnam Behzadi as well as collaborating with well-established filmmakers like Rakhshan Banietemad. She also produced award-winning documentaries such as “Sepideh” by Berit Madsen.

Katayoon Shahabi launched her France-based company, Noori Pictures in 2012 in order to expand her work more efficiently on an international level. Since then, she has continued to produce more features and documentaries and introduced talented Iranian and Afghan directors to the world.

On sixteen occasions, Katayoon Shahabi has been a jury member in different international festivals such as IDFA, San Sebastian Film Festival (as Chairwoman), and the main competition of Cannes Film Festival in 2016.
She is a Member of the Documentary and Fiction Producers Guild in Iran.