Portrait of Amin Shirazi

Amin Shirazi

UX / Visual Design. Graphic & Brand Design. Theatre Art Direction. Photography & Visual Storytelling

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Art Director & Playwright

Profile

Amin Shirazi’s creative journey began in 1997 with a student-led troupe staging original plays. In 1999, while studying in university, he co-founded Namava Theatre Company in Tehran. Over the next several years, Namava produced four plays and three short films, including Siphon, which was performed at the Iran International University Theater Festival. Amin took on multiple roles — assistant director, actor, and playwright — and later directed The Tent-Love-Game at the same festival.

His work has always bridged theatre and film. In addition to theatre productions, Amin has written, directed, and designed for several short films, including Hysteria, Ticket, and the digital version of 9428 created during the pandemic for the Toronto Fringe Collective. His film work reflects the same attention to emotional nuance and design detail as his stage work.

After immigrating to Canada, Amin co-founded Goussan Theatre Company in Montreal in 2016. The company has since produced seven performances and play readings, notably bringing Iranian theatre artists to perform in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal — strengthening cultural ties through performance.

In 2018, Amin was awarded a spot in Montreal’s démART-Mtl program and collaborated with Geordie Theatre, where he developed 9428, his first English-language play. The script won first prize in the 2019 Toronto Fringe Festival’s New Play Contest and was staged in 2022.

In 2024, he served as a judge in the “Academy” category of Toronto’s TPN Festival, dedicated to celebrating Iranian theatre artists in diaspora.

Education

  • Master of Art, Dramatic Literature

    Soore University — Tehran, Iran

    Thesis: Tautology in Dramatic Literature: Comparative Study

    Translation (to Persian): Connection written by Jack Gelber

Awards

  • 2020 — Winner, New Play Contest, Toronto Fringe Festival
  • 2018 — Winner, démART-Mtl program, Montreal

Theatre (selected)

  • 9428, A monster I learned to love — Playwright, Art Director, Set Designer; Developed with Geordie Theatre, Montreal (2019); Toronto Fringe, Perfumed in Tarragon Theatre (2022)
  • STATE.LESS — Director & Playwright; devised theatre workshop with the cast of 9428.
  • Caligula — Playwright; with Nora Zarkandi; Reza Rad, Kay Meek Center, Vancouver
  • Star Spangled Girl — Assistant Director; Mehdi Goleij, Maison de la culture CDN, Montreal
  • Tent-Love-Game — Playwright & Director; Festival staging, Tehran, Iran
  • Siphon — Actor; Soheil Shahbazloo; Fajr University Theater Festival (International Section), Tehran, Iran (2004)
  • Daughter of Narenj o Toranj (TYA) — Playwright; Directed by Samira Yazdan Pazhouh; Honar Hall, Tehran, Iran (2010)

Film (selected)

  • Hysteria (Short) — Screenwriter & Director; 100 Second Film Festival, Tehran, Iran
  • 9428 (Digital Collective) — Screenwriter, Director & Editor; Toronto Fringe Collective 2020, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Wind in the Veil — Set & Costume Designer; Shahoo Zandi, Tehran, Iran
  • Shopping Centre (Short Film) — Actor; by Ahmad Shahvand, Tehran, Iran (2009)
  • Red Rose (Short Film) — Set Designer; by Ahmad Shahvand, Tehran, Iran (2005)
  • Ticket — Screenwriter & Assistant Director; Soheil Shahbazloo, Tehran, Iran

Related Experience

  • Associate Artist — Geordie Productions (démART-MTL program [CAM]), Montreal — Jan–Jun 2018
  • Executive Manager & Graphic Artist — “Prisoner of Second Ave.” by M. Bagheri, Goussan Theatre Co., Vancouver / Toronto / Montreal — Feb–Mar 2019
  • Vice President & Playwright — Goussan Theatre Company, Montreal — 2015–Present
  • Executive Manager — Third Festival of “Vazheh ha”, Montreal — 2016
  • Artistic Director & Co‑founder — Namava Theatre Company, Tehran, Iran — 1998–2005
  • Graphic Designer & Photographer — Various companies and industries — 2005–Present

Other Credits (selected)

Graphic Designer

  • Death Knocks (2001)
  • The Still Alarm (2002)
  • Acid (2002)
  • Siphon (2003)
  • Mrs. Lorry (2006)
  • Star Spangled Girl (2007)
  • No Exit (2007)
  • The Prisoner of Second Avenue (2008)
  • Wimpo (2012)
  • Star Spangled Girl (2015)

Set Designer

  • Gis Golabaton (stage — 2002)
  • Fault (stage — 2003)
  • John Gabriel Borkman (stage — 2003)

Interests

Movies, Theatre, Novels, Interior Designing, Movie Directing, Running, Day Dreaming, Animation, Drinking Coffee, Socializing

Highlights

Served as a judge (Academy category) at Toronto’s TPN Festival, celebrating Iranian theatre artists in diaspora — 2024.

Selected Press & Programs

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