Nazanin Boniadi
| Nazanin Boniadi | |
|---|---|
| Born | Nazanin Boniadi 22 May 1979 Tehran, Iran |
| Occupation | Actress, Activist |
| Years active | Since 2006 |
Nazanin Boniadi (Persian: نازنین بنیادی, IPA: [nɒːzæˈniːn bonjɒːˈdiː]; English: /ˈnɑːzəniːn boʊnˈjɑːdi/ NAH-zə-neen bon-YAH-dee; born May 22, 1979) is a Iranian-British actress[1] currently living and working in the United States.
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[edit] Early life
Boniadi was born in Tehran, Iran. Her parents moved to London when she was an infant. She performed violin and ballet as a young girl.[2]
She was educated at a private school and later moved to the US where she earned a Bachelor's Degree, with Honors, in Biological Sciences from the University of California Irvine. At UCI, she won the Chang Pin-Chun Undergraduate Research Award for molecular research involving cancer treatment and heart transplant rejection. She was also Assistant Editor-in-Chief of MedTimes, UCI's undergraduate medical newspaper.[3][4]
[edit] Career
Boniadi's first major acting role was as Leyla Mir on the Emmy Award-winning daytime drama General Hospital and its SOAPnet spin-off series General Hospital: Night Shift, making her the first contract actor to play a Middle Eastern character in American daytime television history. She is also the first Iranian-born actress to ever be on contract on an American soap opera.[5]
She was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series in 2008 for her role in General Hospital.[1]
Her General Hospital character died from exposure to a biotoxin in February 2009.
Boniadi has also landed supporting roles in several major Hollywood film productions, such as Charlie Wilson's War directed by Mike Nichols, Iron Man directed by Jon Favreau, and The Next Three Days directed by Paul Haggis.[1]
In February 2011, she debuted as Nora, a love interest for Neil Patrick Harris's character Barney Stinson, on the sixth season of the hit CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother.[6] She reprised this role during the show's seventh season.
In November 2011, Boniadi appeared opposite George Clooney in a European spot for Nespresso, called The Swap, directed by Grant Heslov.[7]
[edit] Activism
Boniadi is an Official Spokesperson for Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), and has worked at a grassroots level and appeared on numerous international TV and radio programs to campaign for the rights of disenfranchised populations across the world. In particular, she has been very involved in safeguarding human rights by participating in events that bring attention to the unjust conviction and treatment of Iranian youth, women and prisoners of conscience.[8]
Boniadi provided a voiceover to AIUSA’s “Power of Words” public service announcement with Morgan Freeman, which won a Webby Award;[9] campaigned with the organization for the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA);[10] has served as a panelist and emcee for events related to Iranian rights, and spearheaded The Neda Project with AIUSA and indie rock band The Airborne Toxic Event in May/June 2010.[11] She has an official blog on the Amnesty International USA website.[12]
In December 2010, she initiated an Amnesty International petition for Iranian film directors Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof, who were convicted of “propaganda against the state”. The petition was co-signed by prominent Hollywood directors and industry leaders such as Paul Haggis, Martin Scorsese, Sean Penn, Harvey Weinstein, Ron Howard and others, and generated over 21,000 signatures.[13][14] On June 8, 2011, Boniadi joined a delegation of Hollywood luminaries, lead by Haggis and AIUSA Executive Director Larry Cox, to deliver the petition to the Iran Mission to the United Nations in New York.[15][16]
On June 3, 2011, Boniadi joined Sarah Shourd in a rolling hunger strike in solidarity with Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal and wrote an article in support of the Free The Hikers campaign.[17][18][19]
On July 11, 2011, Boniadi received the Social Cinema Award at the Ischia Global Film & Music Festival for her human rights work with Amnesty International.[20][21]
[edit] Filmography
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2007 | The Game | Josie | 2 Episodes |
| General Hospital: Night Shift | Leyla Mir | 13 Episodes | |
| 2007–2009 | General Hospital | Leyla Mir | 119 Episodes |
| 2010 | The Deep End | Heather Mosson | Episode: "To Have and to Hold" |
| 24 | Blonde Woman | 2 Episodes | |
| Hawthorne | Aneesa Amara | Episode: "Final Curtain" | |
| 2011 | Suits | Lauren Pearl | Episode: "Errors and Omissions" |
| 2011 | How I Met Your Mother | Nora | 9 Episodes |
| 2012 | CSI | Nurse Lauren | Episode: "Seeing Red" |
| Film | |||
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Kal: Yesterday & Tomorrow | Simmi | Short Film |
| 2007 | Gameface | Taylor | |
| 2008 | Charlie Wilson's War | Afghan Refugee Woman | Uncredited |
| Iron Man | Amira Ahmed | ||
| 2009 | Diplomacy | Persian Interpreter | Short Film |
| 2010 | The Next Three Days | Elaine | |
| 2012 | Shirin in Love | Shirin | |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Nazanin Boniadi - IMDb
- ^ BBCPersian.com
- ^ UC Irvine Feature: Commencement
- ^ The Modern Magazine for Persian Celebrations, Cuisine, Culture & Community
- ^ Human Rights Education a Priority for Iranian Actress
- ^ 'How I Met Your Mother': Nazanin Boniadi to guest as a love interest - latimes.com
- ^ Nepresso - What Else - Nouvelle campagne : "The Swap" - YouTube
- ^ Nazanin Boniadi | Human Rights Now - Amnesty International USA Blog
- ^ Morgan Freeman: The Power of Words - YouTube
- ^ Violence Against Women | Amnesty International USA
- ^ I Am Neda | Human Rights Now - Amnesty International USA Blog
- ^ Nazanin Boniadi | Human Rights Now - Amnesty International USA Blog
- ^ Paul Haggis, Sean Penn, Martin Scorsese and Harvey Weinstein Join Amnesty International to Condemn Harsh Sentence for Acclaimed Iranian Director Jafar Panahi | Amnesty Interna...
- ^ Iran must reverse harsh sentence imposed on distinguished film director Amnesty International USA | Human Rights Action
- ^ Iran Mission to the United Nations Accepts 21,000-Plus Petition Signatures from Amnesty International Delegation of Hollywood Luminaries | Amnesty International USA
- ^ Hollywood Unites for Iranian Filmmakers | Human Rights Now - Amnesty International USA Blog
- ^ http://freethehikers.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Iranian-Americans-hunger-striking-060111-web.pdf
- ^ Freed Iran hiker: Freed hiker fasts for two men still in Iran - Los Angeles Times
- ^ http://blog.freethehikers.org/6119/they-want-nothing-more-than-the-freedom-to-continue-making-this-world-a-better-place-nazanin-boniadi-spokesperson-amnesty-international-usa/
- ^ • The Official Website of Nazanin Boniadi •
- ^ ISCHIA GLOBAL FEST 2011 - MUSIC & FILM Sabato 16 Luglio 2011
