Levantine Cultural Center presents a special cast and crew screening of The Stoning of Soraya M. (USA, 116 ms), with director Cyrus Nowrasteh and stars Mozhan Marnò and Navid Neghaban, as part of its "New Voices in Middle Eastern Cinema" series. The drama was adapted from French-Iranian journalist Freidoune Sahebjam's 1994 book of the same name based on a true story. The film is directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh and stars Academy Award nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo, as well as James Caviezel and Mozhan Marnò. Stoning had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was the runner-up for the Audience Choice Award. It was also the second runner-up for the Cadillac People's Choice Award. The book has been banned in Iran because of its perceived critical attitude toward the Iranian legal system.

Stranded in a remote Iranian village, journalist Sahebjam is approached by Zahra (Aghdashloo), a woman with a harrowing tale to tell about her niece, Soraya, and the bloody circumstances of her death the day before. Her story attempts to expose what it perceives as the inhumanity of sharia law. Her last and only hope for justice lies in the hands of the journalist, who must escape with the story-and his life-in order to communicate the violence to the world.

The Stoning of Soraya M. had its world premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won Runner-up for the Audience Choice Award. It also won Second Runner-up for the Cadillac People's Choice Award, as well as the Audience Award for Best Feature at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival. The film also won the Heartland Truly Moving Picture Award, and the 2009 Ghent Film Festival's Canvas Audience Award. At the 2009 Satellite Awards, it was named one of the year's Top Ten Films and nominated for Best Drama Film, while its star Shohreh Agdashloo won Best Actress in a Drama. In 2010, the film was hailed as one of Movieguide's Ten Best 2009 Movies for Mature Audiences and was the co-winner, with Invictus, of Movieguide's Faith and Freedom Award for Promoting Positive American Values for 2009. It also shared, with Women in Shroud, the Cinema for Peace Award for Justice in conjunction with the Berlin Film Festival and won Outstanding Foreign Motion Picture at the NAACP Image Awards.

Mozhan Marnó, Navid Neghaban, Cyrus NowrastehCyrus Nowrasteh is an American screenwriter and director of theatrical films, television shows, and made-for-TV movies. He is best known for his involvement in the controversial docudrama The Path to 9/11 and The Stoning of Soraya M.

Mozhan Marnò is a Yale-trained theatre, film and television performer who has starred in the Heather Raffo play "9 Part of Desire," as well as in such films as Traitor with Don Cheadle and Charlie Wilson's War with Tom Hanks. She has lived in France, Germany, Sweden and Argentina, and speaks French, German, Farsi, and Spanish. She resides in Los Angeles.

Navid Neghaban was born in Mashhad, Iran and fell in love with acting at the tender age of eight, while provoking laughter from a large audience by portraying an old man on stage. He has been building a strong career in the US, playing a broad range of intriguing characters in film and TV, including a powerful leading role in The Stoning of Soraya M., and significant supporting roles in Brothers with Tobey Maguire, directed by Jim Sheridan, and Powder Blue with Jessica Biel and Forest Whitaker. Other film credits include Broken with Heather Graham and Jeremy Sisto, and Charlie Wilson's War opposite Tom Hanks, directed by Mike Nichols.

David DiaanIranian-American David Diaan is a multi-hyphenate actor, writer, director, producer, who can be last seen in the feature film "The Stoning of Soraya M.," which premiered at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival. In 2003, despite the Islamic Republic of Iran's strict laws and surveillance of public and private life, he traveled to his homeland of Iran and filmed, directed and produced the documentary "Iran Is My Home." Diaan's screenplay "The Apology" won first prize in the 2004 Slamdance Screenplay Competition.