Special Women

Nafisa Saba Sahar Biography
Nafisa Saba Sahar is an Afghan film director, producer actress and a police officer in interior ministry of Afghanistan (born in Koche-Rika khana off Maiwand Road, old down town of Kabul, on 28th August 1975

Career
She gained her baccalaureate at Ansari Balkhi Girls College in Kabul.
Sahar’s firs forays in acting were on the school theatre open stages at the age of nine following on 1986 at the age of eleven she was hired officially as chosen performer of open stage drama performer to work at the Kabul theatre centre where she built her acting career.
In 1988 Afghanistan’s national open stage drama festival honored Nafisa Saba Sahar the best open stage performer award.
In 1990 Sahar joined the Interior Ministry of Afghanistan’s cinema and theatre department as a performer where, she did her first police training as well and after nine month training she became a police officer.
In 1992 she was appointed as the manager of cinema and theatre department at the interior ministry of Afghanistan and here she wrote her many open stage dramas.
In 1999 she joined Shafaq Film Institution for cinema academic studies and gained the national certificate in film directing.
In 2002 she did another intensified film directing course at the fine art department in Kabul University where her directorial debut started.
Nafisa Saba Sahar has appeared in more than 36 short film as well as long feature film and has played roles in more than 80 open stage dramas.
In 2003 she established Saba film production company (SFPC) the first woman film production in Afghanistan in a big official ceremony in Kabul.
1. In 2004 she wrote, directed and produced her first feature film.
2. In 2004 the information and cultural ministry of Afghanistan appointed her as one of the delegation member for the Afghanistan’s picture broadcasting observant
3. In 2005 she was appointed as one of the Afghanistan’s cinema union and filmmaker’s leader
4. In 2005 she made a film in Pashto language under the title of brightness after darkness (Rana Di Toor Tam Pasi)
5. In 2005 she produced directed and wrote another feature film Oath (Sawgand)
6. In 2007 she produced two film the Rescue and the Monsters of the death
7. In 2008 she produce and directed feature film under the title of My Life My Homeland (Tani Man Watani Man)
8. In 2008 she produce and directed 25 documentary films under the title of Living in Cave (Sandagi Dar Magaraha)
9. In 2010 she produced 15 episodes series drama about elimination of violence against women.
10. In 2011 she produced 40 episodes series drama about Afghan national police empowerment, under the title of Commissar Amanullah.
Awards and nominees
1. Afghanistan National theatrical festival: 1988 best open stage performer
2. Title of best and first afghan woman filmmaker and director: 2005
3. (oath) Best feature film award: Tajikistan Didar Film Festival 2005
4. (living in cave) documentary: Safma Nepal Film Festival special award 2008
5. In 2008 Nafisa Saba Sahar received cash and non cash prizes for the living in cave documentary from the GTZ organization, ministry of interior, cultural and information ministry, woman affair ministry, defense ministry, Afghanistan national TV, Kabul Art University, afghan cinema union, afghan film organization, Kabul theatre center.

Mobile Cinema activities
1. In 2005 Nafisa Saba Sahar produced, directed and wrote another feature film (Law-Qaboon) which was funded by the Afghanistan ministry of interior and broadcasted by Saba Film mobile cinema screening team in over ten main provinces of Afghanistan.
2. In 2008 Nafisa Saba Sahar produced, directed, and wrote another feature film (The Rescue- Najat) which was funded by GTZ organization and broadcasted by Saba Film mobile cinema screening team in over 17 provinces of Afghanistan.