Soudabeh Moradian was born in Tehran-Iran and graduated from the Tehran University of Art (School of Cinema & Theater), majored in cinema in 1996. She also received an MFA degree in Film and Video from California Institute of the arts (CalArts) in 2015.

She started her career in Film-making, screenwriting and editing in 1996. She has made many TV documentary series about Iranian rural women, and some independent documentaries about “war and madness" such as "Doomsday Machine", "Story Of The Land On Ashes", "Mahin", "Voices Against Them" and some other narrative and documentary films like "The Leader of Caravan", "My Name Is Tomorrow" and "Les Chroniques d'iran". The subjects of her movies are mainly based on women, social issues and psychological impacts of war. A number of her movies have been in official selection of various international film festivals and many of them won awards.

Soudabeh immigrated to the United States in 2009 and continued her career as an Iranian-American filmmaker in the US since then . She made her first narrative feature length drama called Polaris in 2014 in Los Angeles and Seattle.  Polaris has been showcased in several film festivals since 2016.  

She is currently an adjunct faculty member at the Art Institute of California - Inland Empire (2017). 


Awards:

Polaris:
  • Won Best Feature at Culver City Film Festival (USA)
  • Won Best Feature at California Women Film Festival (USA)
  • Nominated for Best Director at California Women Film Festival (USA)
  • Nominated for Best Actress California Women Film Festival (USA)
  • Official Selection of CineIran (Toronto) and LA film Festival (Los Angeles)
I was Born Yesterday:
  • Won Best Documentary at Barcelona Planet Film Festival (Spain) 
  • European Film Festival (Russia) 
  • Spotlight Documentary Film Award (USA)
  • Official Selection of: Los Angeles CineFest (USA)
  • Sydney World Film festival, Roma Cinemadoc (Italy)
Doomsday Machine:
  • A Prize of honor at Parvin Etesami Film festival (Iran)
  • Nominated for Best Documentary at DOCSDF International Film Festival (Mexico) 
  • Official Selection of Document 7 - International Human Right Film Festival (Scotland), UKIFF (London), Forough Film Festival (Iran) 
Story Of The Land On Ashes: 
  • Official Selection of 20th Fajr Film festival (Iran), 18th International Short Film Festival (Iran) and Forough Film Festival (Iran)
Mahin: 
  • A Prize of Honor at Kish documentary Film festival (Iran)
  • A prize of Honor at the tour of Iranian films in North America in Vancouver (Canada)
  • Official Selection of Hamburg Film Festival (Germany), Dresden Film Festival (Germany), Ebenezer Film festival (Austria), Borne Film Festival (Czech Republic) 
The Leader Of Caravan:
  • Official Selection of Madrid Film Festival (Spain)

Other activities:
• Vice President of Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association IRDFA (2008-2009)
• Jury member for a number of film festivals in Iran.
• Executive manager of the First workshop on documentary film making by IRDFA (Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association) and DEFC (Documentary and Experimental Film Center) in Tehran, Iran
• Columnist and Film critic in newspapers and artistic foundations.