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Raouf Masoud
Born in Iran in 1965, Masoud Raouf initially studied painting. He came to Canada in 1988 and enrolled in the animation program at Ontario's Sheridan College, where he directed the animated short Wings of Hope. He subsequently made Butterfly Over the Ocean (1996) and Many Lessons in Baidoa (1998), as well as directing a number of public service announcements and teaching at various institutions. He also produced the documentary Trial, directed by Moslem Mansouri. Over the years, he has developed a poetic style combining aesthetic experimentation with a strong commitment to human rights.
In 2002, he directed his first film for the National Film Board, the documentary The Tree that Remembers, in which he tries to understand what led to the suicide of an Iranian student who was living in Canada as a refugee. The film won the Silver Award for Best Canadian Documentary at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto, the Golden Sheaf Award for Best Social Documentary at Yorkton and the Bronze Plaque at the Columbus International Film and Video Festival.
In 2003, he completed Blue Like a Gunshot, produced by the NFB's French Animation and Youth Studio. This short animated film is the visual transposition of powerful poem about the barbarity of our world. Director Masoud Raouf suggests intense emotions through his deft manipulation of oil paints, his sensitive use of colour and the dynamic gesture of his painting. To date, the film has won four awards, including the 2003 Jutra for best animated film.
