Our Stories On Screen

Our Stories On Screen is a celebration of short films by West Asian diaspora filmmakers, followed by a filmmaker panel and community gathering at Cinema Nova.

Our stories are beautiful. Our stories are vital. This curated showcase brings together local short films from both emerging and established filmmakers within the West Asian diaspora—real, honest stories about who we are and how we see the world.

After the screening, join the filmmakers for an open and casual panel conversation about diasporic storytelling, navigating the film industry, and the role of community in shaping our creative voices. We’ll then move to the Cinema Nova café for refreshments and deeper connection.

We have powerful, authentic filmmaking voices within the West Asian community, and our stories are part of the Australian film industry, yet it’s rare that we get the opportunity to recognise and celebrate them, especially together. Let’s honour these voices, and each other, in this shared space.

All are welcome. This is an open invitation to celebrate, engage with, and be inspired by diasporic narratives shared on the land we are all guests of.

This event takes place on the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation. Always was, always will be, Aboriginal land.

The lineup:

The Phoenix by Noora Niasari

An exiled Iranian actor teaches drama to teenagers inside an Australian detention centre. Starring the acclaimed pre-revolution Iranian actor Manuchehr Farid.

Iranian-born Niasari’s debut feature film Shayda premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2023, where it won the Audience Award.

The Audition by Dee Dogan

When 21-year-old Milan chooses to sing a Kurdish song for an audition, it’s an opportunity to make the women in her family proud—if only her mother doesn’t embarrass her first.

Dogan is a Kurdish filmmaker and was one of the screenwriters for the anthology feature film Here Out West, which opened the 68th Sydney Film Festival.

You Are My Tomorrow by Lara Köse

A young woman is forced to care for her mentally unstable mother in this intimate and challenging portrait of intergenerational trauma within immigrant families.

Köse is of Turkish-Alevi heritage, and her recent short film premiered in the Australian Shorts program at the 2024 Melbourne International Film Festival. She is also a director of the iconic TV drama Neighbours.

Tabbeh by Sarah Ghassali

Best friends Farha and Rosa catch up on the latest gossip over a game of Tabbeh and two cups of chai.

Syrian-born Ghassali’s Tabbeh won the Best Victorian Next Gen award at the 2025 Melbourne Women in Film Festival.

This event is supported by the City of Melbourne #cityofmelbourne