- Nicole, the daughter of two prominent Iranian-American journalists, Nader Sadighi and Shahla Arasteh, grew up in London, England.
She has worked with Producer Georgia Masters (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) whom she'd worked with previously on the BAFTA nominated 'One Night Stand' starring Jemma Redgrave (Howard's End, Dracula, Doctor Who) and James Purefoy, (The Following, Revenge, A Knight's Tale, Resident Evil).
More recently winning many awards for starring in the foreign-language film 'I Am Neda', a passion project which was also her directorial debut at the 65th Cannes International Film Festival's American Pavilion. 'I Am Neda' also stars award-winning actress Mary Apick, (Dead End, Checkpoint, Homeland).
'I Am Neda' is an Iranian language film with English subtitles, based on a true story of the young Iranian woman Neda Agha Soltan whose murder went viral for the world to see, 'I Am Neda' has received a lot of attention from the press such as the Huffington Post and legendary film critics like F.X. Feeney of LA Weekly for its heartwarming yet controversial subject matter.
Being a passionate advocate of many causes, Nicole is keenly committed to exposing human rights violations across the globe. She was also a former fellow researcher at the Center for the Promotion of Human Rights and Democracy for Iran. She is often approached as a keynote spokesperson on behalf of numerous non-profit human rights groups and NGOs, both domestically and internationally . One of Nicole's most prominent invitations was from the famous group 'Hands Off Cain' in Rome, Italy, where she was invited alongside distinguished panelists, Italian politicians Marco Pannella and Daniele Capezzone. The conference was held in support of the UN General Assembly Resolution for the universal moratorium on capital punishment, which was also presented to the European Commission.
She not only has an artistic flair as a creative writer but has been a freelance writer for many leading publications and newspapers for a number of years.
Fortune led her to find the insight and inspiration to write, produce and direct her very first award-winning short film, 'I Am Neda', which she starred in as Neda, while also adding another hyphenate in front of her name as director. It was at this time she founded her own production company Persepolis Pictures.
The film has since won 11 awards and has received 21 nominations at different film festivals, such as USA Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival's American Pavilion. Including nominations for Best Actress for her performance as Neda, Best Director and Best Screenplay for 'I Am Neda'. In an interview with the BBC, Nicole commented: "As an actress who wore many hats for the making of I Am Neda, to also be recognized for my written and directorial debut is beyond thrilling. This film has been a huge endeavor for me, and there were so many challenges on the way. It has given me new found respects for the "Clint Eastwoods'" of the world who have not only written and directed but at times have starred in their own movies."
I Am Neda has won at the following film festivals:
Platinum Remi Special Jury Award: WorldFest Houston Int'l Film Festival 2012 Finalist: Cannes The American Pavilion for Emerging Filmmakers 2012 Finalist: USA Film Festival 2012 Best International Short: Burbank Int'l Film Festival 2012 Best Drama Short: Action on Film Int'l Film Festival 2012 Atlantis Award Best Film Score:(Rino Amato)Moondance Int'l Film Fest 2012 Best Short: World Music and Independent Film Festival 2012 Honorable Mention: Los Angeles Movie Awards 2012 Honorable Mention: Hollywood and Vine Film Festival 2012 Semi-Finalist: Best Short Film: Moondance Int'l Film Festival 2012
I Am Neda has been nominated at the following film festivals:
Official Selection Focus on World Film Montreal World Film Festival 2012 Nominated Best Actress in a Short (Nicole Kian Sadighi): WMI Film Fest 2012 Nominated Best Director in a Short(Nicole Kian Sadighi): WMI Film Fest 2012 Nominated Best Supporting Actress in a Short(Mary Apick): WMI Film Fest 2012 Nominated Best Screenplay Short (Nicole Kian Sadighi): WMI Film Fest 2012 Nominated Best Dialogue: Action on Film Int'l Film Festival 2012 Nominated Audience Choice Awards: Beverly Hills Film Festival 2012 Nominated Best Film: American Insights Free Speech Film Festival 2012 Nominated Best Foreign Film: BeFilm The Underground Film Festival 2012 Official Selection: Arpa Int'l Film Festival Official Selection 2012 Official Selection 2011: Santa Rosa International Film Festival.
Ms. Sadighi interviewed by has been interviewed and featured by C-Span, The Huffington Post, BBC, Associated Press, France24, Los Angeles Times, CCTV, Paris Match, Voice of America, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, Christian Science Monitor, Radio Vaticana, LA Observed, FrontPage Magazine, Women's Media Center, Universal Film Magazine, Kayhan London, and many more.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Publicist
- Her English accent, which she hasn't lost since moving to the United States
- Known for portraying strong, independent yet sensitive characters
- Is a huge of advocate of human rights, and is a asked as a guest speaker for numerous NGO's. Is a fellow researcher at the Center for the Promotion of Human Rights and Democracy for Iran.
- Nicole is a dedicated gamer of all the major games out there. Her favorites are the single player shooting games.
- Grew up in Richmond, London, England.
- Both her parents are veteran broadcast journalists and news anchors and well known in both the Persian and American journalism circles.
- Is the daughter of Nader Sadighi and Shahla Arasteh.
- Don't make a movie just for the hell of it and then leave to collect dust after your last of shoot. If you're going to venture into producing/directing any movie, have a game plan and ask yourself "why am I making this movie?". Don't do it just for the sake of telling people that you've made a movie. So what. Don't waste your time if that's the case.
- As an actress who wore many hats for the making of I Am Neda, to also be recognized for my written and directorial debut is beyond thrilling. This film has been a huge endeavor for me, and there were so many challenges on the way. It has given me new found respects for the "Clint Eastwoods'" of the world who have not only written and directed but at times have starred in their own movies.
- "There are a handful of movies that I love watching over again. I am particularly drawn to stories about human senses and struggles. I must admit I do have a fascination with tragedies but one role that I believe I was made for is Madam de Tourbel in Dangerous Liaisons. It's a classic Greek tragedy. Its a story which takes you on a journey of desperation and hope. That paradox and conflict intrigues me. It's about the most passionate and desperate kind of love. The darker more sinister version of Romeo and Juliet. But Michelle Pfeiffer's performance was really golden and relatable. Her and John Malkovich and Glen Close were pure perfection".
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