Director Statement

Tehran Lights and Hollywood Nights marks my first step away from experimental filmmaking and into the world of documentary. This project is incredibly meaningful to me—not only because it is my first documentary, but because it tells the story of my grandfather, Kourosh Bibiyan.

The process was both technical and deeply personal. I conducted multiple interviews with my grandfather, encouraging him to open up, be vulnerable, and reflect on his extraordinary career. I wanted this film to capture not just an accurate portrayal of his journey, but also the emotion and legacy behind it. Beyond being a film for audiences, I also wanted it to be something he himself could look back on, recognizing the scale of his accomplishments and saying, “Wow, I did that.”

One of my favorite moments in the film comes at the end, when I ask him how he feels about me following in his footsteps as a filmmaker. On screen, he responds warmly that he loves it. What makes this moment particularly meaningful—and a little funny—is that years earlier, when I first told him I wanted to study film, he warned me not to pursue it. Clearly, his perspective has changed, and that full-circle moment is something I treasure.

The making of this film also involved extensive archival research. I delved into my grandfather’s vault of material and uncovered an astonishing collection of original footage, music videos, broadcasts, and behind-the-scenes moments that had never been seen before. This archive quickly became the heart of the project. It is a goldmine of Iranian-American media history, and preserving, sharing, and expanding it has become just as important to me as telling my grandfather’s personal story.