Hamza Bangash is a Pakistani-Canadian director and screenwriter. In 2019, Bangash was selected for the Locarno Filmmakers Academy and the Asian Film Academy. His artistic practice is based out of Karachi, Pakistan- where he founded a boutique production house- CityLights Media- in 2015. Through this platform, he creates short fiction films, stage plays, digital documentaries and commercials. Dia (2018), his debut short film, is an exploration of a young woman’s grief-induced spiral into a terrifying condition. The film had it’s world premiere at the 2018 Locarno Film Festival, and received critical acclaim. Bangash is currently in early stages of development on his first feature film, MARIAM. The project has been selected for Locarno Open Doors Lab 2018 and recently won the MPA-AFA First prize award at the Busan International Film Festival 2019. The feature film is intended for a 2021 theatrical release.