Noora Niasari is an Iranian-Australian film director based in Australia. Born in Iran and raised in Australia, she initially studied architecture at the University of Technology Sydney, before turning to filmmaking, later receiving a Masters of Film & Television from the Victorian College of the Arts (Melbourne University). Niasari's debut feature film SHAYDA, starring Zar Amir Ebrahimi and executive produced by Cate Blanchett, had its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award in the World Dramatic Competition and was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics for North American distribution. It went on to be selected as Australia's official submission for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards. Noora continues to focus on stories that shine a light on Iranian women, currently working on an adaptation of Mahsa Rahmani Noble’s novel ‘Raya’. Her ongoing work is a powerful vessel for representation and cultural understanding in cinema.