Gandom Films Production is an independent nonfiction production company founded by Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni.
With a shared commitment to cinematic storytelling, Gandom Films produces projects that balance artistic integrity with engaging storytelling — highlighting the nuances of human experience to speak quietly, yet powerfully to viewers globally. Their latest projects include Cutting Through Rocks, World Documentary Grand Jury Prize winner at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.
As the first elected councilwoman of her deeply conservative Iranian village, Sara Shahverdi aims to break long-held patriarchal traditions by training teenage girls to ride motorcycles and stopping child marriages. When accusations arise questioning Sara’s intentions to empower the girls, her identity is put in turmoil.
“Precisely lensed… A deftly shaped work of cinematic nonfiction.”
— Lauren Wissot
“Uniquely propulsive… Practically magical.”
— Siddhant Adlakha
“One of those profound vérité documentaries that are only possible through the patience and perseverance of the filmmakers.”
— Barbara Goslawski
“Raucously entertaining… I was completely riveted.”
— Bilge Ebiri
“Seamlessly edited.”
— Jonathan Holland
“Beautifully crafted…celebrates the profound ways women like Shahverdi can – and do – change the world around them.”
— Sara Clements
Watch the Cutting Through Rocks trailer
Press Highlights
Cutting Through Rocks Wins Grand Jury Prize, World Cinema Documentary
Deadline: ‘Cutting Through Rocks’ Trailer: In Oscar-Contending Doc, Maverick Woman Defies Convention In Story That “Resonates Universally”
Sundance Grand Jury Winner Cutting Through Rocks Acquired by Autlook Ahead of Berlinale
The Guardian:
“Cutting Through Rocks review – the female firebrand fighting the patriarchy in rural Iran”
Cutting Through Rocks Wins Audience Award at Visions du Reél
Variety:
Cutting Through Rocks is “uniquely propulsive, practically magical […] Its fly-on-the-wall quality works wonders “
Cutting Through Rocks Wins Best Documentary, Gex Doc Competition at Giffoni Film Festival in Italy
Cutting Through Rocks Wins Jean-Loup Passek Award for Best Documentary Feature at MDOC in Portugal
Cutting Through Rocks an Unforgettables Honoree & Audience Choice Prize Longlist at Cinema Eye Honors
Meet the Team
SARA KHAKI
Director, Producer, Editor
Sara Khaki is a documentary director, producer, and editor dedicated to telling stories that promote gender equity. She is a Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Award winner, World Cinema Documentary and Visions Du Reél Audience Award winner for her feature documentary Cutting Through Rocks, which follows the first elected councilwoman of a rural Iranian village. The film has been called “a deftly shaped work of cinematic nonfiction” by Indiewire and “one of those profound vérité documentaries that are only possible through the patience and perseverance of the filmmakers” by POV Magazine.
Her short film Our Iranian Lockdown is now streaming on The Guardian and received an IDA Awards nomination. Sara’s co-directed Netflix Original Convergence: Courage in a Crisis was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Current Affairs Film. Sara graduated from the University of Maryland, Baltimore with a BFA in cinematic arts and from the School of Visual Arts with an MFA in social documentary filmmaking. A grantee of the Sundance Film Institute, Chicken & Egg Films, and Firelight Media, Sara’s work continues to amplify change on gender equity through the cinéma vérité form.
MOHAMMADREZA EYNI
Director, Producer, Director of Cinematography
Mohammadreza Eyni is director, producer, and cinematographer, whose career and cinematic approach aims to bridge boundaries, elevate underrepresented voices, and connect diverse perspectives globally. He is a 2025 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Award winner in the World Documentary competition for his feature documentary Cutting Through Rocks, which has become an audience favorite at Sydney, Hot Docs, Visions Du Reél international film festivals, among others. His cinematic approach has been heralded as “uniquely propulsive,” “practically magical” (Variety) and “precisely lensed” (Indiewire) as well as “delivering simple moments into cinematic poetry” (Hammer to Nail.) He was named as one of the top five cinematographers to watch at Sundance in 2025.
His intimate short film Our Iranian Lockdown, streaming on The Guardian, has received an IDA Awards nomination. His co-directed Netflix Original Convergence: Courage in a Crisis was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Current Affairs Film. Mohammadreza has been supported by Sundance Institute, IDFA Bertha Foundation, Hot Docs Cross Current Doc Fund, among others. He is a Tribeca Film Institute alumnus and graduated with an MFA in cinema from Tehran University of Fine Arts.
Previous Films
Convergence: Courage in a Crisis
While COVID-19 exacerbates vulnerabilities across the world, unsung heroes in all levels of society help the tide turn toward a brighter future.
Gandom Films Production's collaboration on Convergence: Courage in a Crisis was in partnership with Story Syndicate, a U.S. based Oscar- and Emmy-winning production company, and Grain Media, a BAFTA- and Oscar-Winning film company based in the U.K.
Our Iranian Lockdown
In this Guardian Documentary, a filmmaking duo turn the camera on themselves and capture their lives in lockdown. In this in intimate portrait, filmed over several weeks in quarantine in Tehran, Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni attempt to process the devastating loss of a family member to COVID-19. As they approach the Persian new year, usually a time of family reunion, the couple find hope and happiness in the traditional rituals that mark the spring equinox.