M.F.A. in Film Production from UCLA and B.A. in Women Studies from UC Santa Barbara
Shammi Samano is a director and producer of numerous films which have been screened at international film festivals and film archives, including Dubai International Film Festival, San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Outfest Los Angeles Film Festival and the UC Berkeley Pacific Film Archive. Inspired by her experience of being an immigrant from Iraq, her films explore the tension and beauty of immigrant life as well as issues of sexuality, especially in the Middle East. In Dubai, she produced the documentary Finding Mr. & Mrs Right: Dubai Style, which Timeout Dubai called “one of the must-see films” of the Dubai International Film Festival. Her recently completed documentary, Doorways, follows a Pakistani immigrant working inside a metro station in Lisbon, Portugal. The film poetically explores immigrant life in Lisbon as well as the historically multicultural neighborhood around Martim Moniz metro station, where the story takes place. Ms. Samano completed her M.F.A. in film production at UCLA and her B.A. in Women Studies at UC Santa Barbara. She has taught film and video at various colleges and universities in the U.S. and Dubai.
