Hengameh Panahi, a leading light of the international film sales industry over the past three decades, has died aged 67.
French-Iranian Panahi died on November 5 after a long illness, according to press agent Viviana Andriani, who handled campaigns for several films sold by Panahi.
Iranian-born executive Panahi attended the Jeanne D’Arc French School in Tehran prior to the 1979 revolution. She moved to Belgium aged 12, where she studied journalism, and founded Celluloid Dealers in 1985.
The company was relaunched as Celluloid Dreams upon Panahi’s move to Paris in 1993. Over the following three decades it has formed a reputation for supporting auteurs of the international independent scene. Panahi sold films by directors including Jacques Audiard, Jafar Panahi (no relation), Francois Ozon, Todd Haynes, the Dardenne brothers, Naomi Kawase and Takeshi Kitano.
Panahi also moved into production across her career, producing Marco Tullio Giordana’s 2018 A Woman’s Name and executive producing Brandon Cronenberg’s 2023 Sundance title Infinity Pool.
Last year she participated in the new-look French Oscar selection committee, alongside Audiard and Michel Gondry.
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