Nawzad Shekhany is a German-Iraqi filmmaker and producer recognized internationally for his work in cinema, documentary filmmaking, and human rights–oriented storytelling. His cinematic journey combines artistic expression with social memory, cultural identity, and humanitarian narratives emerging from conflict and post-war realities.

Over the course of his career, Shekhany received numerous international awards and recognitions, including the Jean-Luc Godard Award, the Golden Fox Award, the Nour El-Sherif Award at the Alexandria Film Festival, and the Hollywood International Moving Pictures Award.

He began his cinematic journey during his academic studies in Munich in 2000 through short films such as:
• 24 Minutes in Munich Museum
• Oriental Wedding in Tunisia

Later, between 2003 and 2014, he led directing teams at Studio Europa in Germany, where he directed documentary series exploring cultures and societies across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the United States.

In 2005, Shekhany participated with an official delegation at the Cannes Film Festival, an experience that deepened his engagement with international cinema and connected him with globally recognized filmmakers, including Martin Scorsese, whom he met during the Marrakech International Film Festival in 2013.

One of his most acclaimed works, The Black Firman (2014), received international recognition and was archived by the International Criminal Court as an important historical and human rights document. He later directed Symphony of Sinjar (2015), continuing his cinematic engagement with memory, genocide, and collective trauma.

In 2018, the United Nations in Geneva selected Shekhany among forty distinguished human rights defenders worldwide, granting him the title of Fellow of the High Commissioner.

His latest feature documentary, Torn: Return to the Roots (2024), which he directed and produced, received several international awards and was honored with the Iraqi Cinema Shield. The latest version of the film was screened theatrically in German cinemas in 2024.

Throughout his career, Shekhany participated as jury member and jury president at several international film festivals and conducted workshops and masterclasses at festivals and universities, including the University of Cologne in Germany, Ibn Zohr University, and Mohammed V University in Morocco.

In Germany, he also directed and produced short films such as:
• Lissy’s House
• Noah

while contributing to promotional productions connected to German-Arab television projects.

As screenwriter, he developed scripts for feature-length and short films and adapted three novels into cinematic screenplays, two of which are currently ready for production.

Between 2021 and 2022, he launched a talent development initiative in Germany dedicated to training young filmmakers and actors in cinema and visual storytelling. In 2023, he received the Cultural Sustainability Shield from the Zayed Ambassadors Initiative in the United Arab Emirates, alongside numerous honors from international festivals and cultural institutions.

His cinematic approach blends human rights concerns with emotional storytelling and visual realism, often focusing on genocide, displacement, identity, survival, and the resilience of marginalized communities.

At the 6th edition of the Kobani International Film Festival 2025, Nawzad Shekhany serves as a member of the International Jury, contributing a perspective shaped by documentary cinema, international film production, and human-centered storytelling.