Sarvnaz Alambeigi


Sarvnaz Alambeigi is an Iranian documentary film director, painter, and poet. Her most notable works are 1001 Nights Apart and Maydegol.

Life and career

Sarvnaz Alambeigi was born in the city of Tehran. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in painting from the Faculty of Arts and Architecture, Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch. She began her artistic career in 2000 with her first painting exhibition, and from 2013 to 2018, she received film training through various specialized courses and international film labs, such as the Danish Film School and the Master School at Documentary Campus. She is an active member of the European International Documentary Association,Germany’s Directors Association. She has also served as a jury member at several international film festivals, including the Osnabrück Film Festival and Sunny Side of the Doc, highlighting her respected role within the global documentary community.
Alambeigi's most notable works include Maydegol and 1001 Nights Apart. 1001 Nights Apart was released in Germany in 2022 and won the VFF Documentary Film Production Award at the Munich International Documentary Film Festival in May 2022, The documentary film explores Iran’s cultural landscape before and after the Islamic revolution era,focusing on the experiences of ballet dancers and underground dancers across these two eras. Maydegol premiered on 18 February 2024 at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, where it received a Special Mention from the jury in the Generation section. Maydegol has been screened at numerous international festivals, including DOK Leipzig,Tokyo, Shanghai, Sarajevo and São Paulo and awarded at international festivals, including, Saxon awards in Leipzig,
Maydegol, tells the story of a teenage Afghan refugee living in Iran who strives to pursue her dream of becoming a Muay Thai boxer despite social injustice and violence outside the ring. The documentary portrays the resilience of Generation Z, showing young people seeking to escape difficult circumstances and claim their basic human rights. The protagonist does not view boxing merely as a way to win in the ring, but as part of the broader challenges of life.
In June 2017, her short film Cypher And Lion was released at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art after the opening ceremony for "The Lions of Iran" exhibit by Tanavoli in 2017. The plot depicts the decline of Iran's sculptural culture and its revival after centuries by Parviz Tanavoli, the father of modern Iranian sculpture.

Notable works

Documentary Films

YearNameGenreCreditAwards
2013The Second RoomShort/DocumentaryDirector/producer
2017TomorrowlandDocumentaryWriter/director/producer
2017Cypher And LionDocumentaryDirector
20221001 Nights ApartDocumentaryWriter/director/producerThe VFF Documentary Film Produktion Award at DOK.fest Munich
2024MaydegolDocumentaryWriter/director/producer

Publication(s)

There Between Two Worlds, her first novella, was published by Ettefagh Publications in 2020.Stork and Snow, her poetry book, was published by Nazar Publishing in 2023.

Exhibition(s)

Conversation, a performance and a solo artwork exhibited in October 2015 at Shirin Gallery, Tehran.The Diary, a solo artwork exhibited in October 2021 at Etemad 1 Gallery, Tehran.
  • Stork and Snow, group exhibition in 2023 at O Gallery.Some Isles Some Places, group exhibition in 2025 with Stefan Ettlinger, at Martin Leyer-Pritzkow Ausstellungen, Düsseldorf.