Amir Naderi is one of the most influential figures of 20th century Persian cinema. He developed his knowledge of cinema by watching films at the theater where he worked as a boy, reading film criticism, and making relationships with leading film critics. He began his career with still photography for some notable Iranian features. In the 1970s, Mr. Naderi turned to directing, and made some of the most important features of the New Iranian Cinema. In 1971, his directorial debut, GOODBYE, FRIEND, was released in Iran. Amir Naderi first came into the international spotlight with films that are now known as cinema classics, THE RUNNER (1985), and WATER, WIND, DUST (1989). THE RUNNER is considered by many critics to be one of the most influential films of the past quarter century. After expatriating to New York in the early '90s, Amir Naderi continued to produce new work. He was named a Rockefeller Film and Video Fellow in 1997, and has served as an artist in residence and instructor at Columbia University, the University of Las Vegas, and New York's School of Visual Arts. His US films have premiered at the Film Society of Lincoln Center/ MoMA's New Directors/ New Films series, the Venice, Cannes, Tribeca, and Sundance Film Festivals. His film SOUND BARRIER (2005) had its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and won the prestigious Roberto Rossellini Prize at the Rome Film Festival. His last feature film VEGAS: BASED ON A TRUE STORY (2008) was in competition at the Venice Film Festival, where it won the CinemAvvenire Best Film in Competition Prize and the SIGNIS Award. The film was also shown at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, the Pusan International Film Festival and CineVegas in Las Vegas. His last three films MARATHON, SOUND BARRIER, and VEGAS were all shown at the FILMeX Film Festival in Tokyo.