TEHRAN – There are five Iranians among the 534 artists and executives invited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to join the organization.

Filmmakers Hossein Molayemi, Shirin Sohani, and Saeed Roustayi, actor Payman Maadi, and cinematographer Ali Ghazi are the Iranians who have received the invitation. The invitees have all distinguished themselves by their contributions to motion pictures in the past years, ISNA reported.

“We are thrilled to invite this esteemed class of artists, technologists, and professionals to join the Academy,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang. “Through their commitment to filmmaking and to the greater movie industry, these exceptionally talented individuals have made indelible contributions to our global filmmaking community.”

Earlier in March, Hossein Molayemi and Shirin Sohani won the 2025 Oscar for Best Animated Short Film at the 97th Academy Awards for “In the Shadow of the Cypress”. It was the first Iranian animated or live-action short film to win at the Oscars.

Molayemi and Sohani can choose between the Animation branch and the Short Films branch to join the Academy.

The pair hold master’s degrees in animation directing from the Tehran University of Art. Molayemi started his professional career in 2004. He has worked as a director, character designer, storyboard artist, animator, and university lecturer.

Sohani started her professional career in 2012 and has served as a director, concept artist, background artist, script writer, and production manager.

Saeed Roustayi, 35, is known for “Leila’s Brothers,” “Law of Tehran,” “Life and a Day,” and “Woman and Child”.

A filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer, Roustayi’s works primarily focus on issues of social injustice, as well as his portrayals of women in Iranian society.

He graduated from Soore University with a Bachelor of Film and Television in directing. He won two Crystal Simorgh awards for best directing and best screenplay at the Fajr International Film Festival for his debut feature film “Life and a Day” (2016). The movie also received the 2016 Reflet d'Or for Best Feature at the Geneva International Film Festival Tous Ecrans.

Roustayi’s second feature film “Law of Tehran” (2019) was nominated for the César Award for Best Foreign Film. Also known as “Just 6.5,” it was well received by critics at the 76th Venice Film Festival and won multiple awards, including the Crystal Simorgh for Audience Choice of Best Film, at the 37th Fajr Film Festival.

His third and fourth films “Leila’s Brothers” and “Woman and Child” competed in the Cannes Film Festival 2022 and 2025, respectively, with the former winning the FIPRESCI Prize as well as the Citizenship Prize at the Cannes 2022.

Payman Maadi, 54, is the star of the Oscar-winning drama “A Separation,” by Asghar Farhadi, who received the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin International Film Festival for his role in the film in 2011.

Maadi co-starred with Kristen Stewart in U.S. director Peter Sattler’s debut “Camp X-Ray” in 2014 and collaborated in Japanese director Kazuaki Kiriya’s action-adventure “Last Knights” in 2015. He has also appeared in all Roustayi’s films.

Ali Ghazi, 49, is a director of photography at cinema, known for “Life and a Day,” “A Hero” (2021), and “About Elly” (2009), both by Asghar Farhadi.

The Academy chooses members based on professional qualifications, with an ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion, and equity remaining a priority. Of the 2025 invited class, 41 percent are women, 45 percent belong to underrepresented communities, and 55 percent are from 60 countries and territories outside the United States. There are 91 Oscar nominees, including 26 winners, and three Scientific and Technical Award winners among the invitees.

If all the invitees accept, the total members, including emeriti, will be 11,120, and the number of voting members will be 10,143. In addition, 35 percent of the Academy would be women, 22 percent would be from underrepresented communities, and 21 percent would be international.

 Photo: Payman Maadi (L) and Saeed Roustayi pose during a photocall for the film “Woman and Child” at the 78th Cannes Film Festival in France, on May 23, 2025.

SS/SAB