Navid Khonsari ( fa, نوید خونساری) (born 1970) is an Iranian - Canadian video game, virtual/mixed reality, film and

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

creator, writer, director and producer. Khonsari is the co-founder of iNK Stories, an award-winning studio creating innovative original work across games, mixed reality (VR/AR), and immersive experiences. He has forged a new hybrid of documentary games, such as ”Verite Games”. Khonsari created the '' 1979 Revolution: Black Friday'', which received the industry’s top honors: a BAFTA, Facebook Game of the Year, Tribeca FF Storyscape, among others, being also recognized by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

as digital work displaying peaceful conflict resolution. Khonsari is credited with having ushered in the current wave of contemporary AAA video games, such as Grand Theft Auto, Max Payne, Red Dead Revolver, and The Warriors, up to the recent Resident Evil: Biohazard. He is an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins, and guest lectures at Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Duke, Northwestern in Qatar, the White House, UN, Sundance and more.

Early life

Khonsari was raised in his homeland

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

until 10. He fled

as a political refugee to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

after the

1979 Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

with his family. He graduated from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

and the

Vancouver Film School Vancouver Film School (VFS) is a private entertainment arts school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1987, it has achieved international recognition. The Vancouver Film School has campus locations around Downtown Vancouver ...

Career

His first short film was titled ''Arcade Angels'', which focused on video game burnouts who robbed a video rental store in an attempt to open an arcade. He wrote and produced ''The Contract'', his first film with

Billy Dee Williams William December Williams Jr. (born April 6, 1937) is an American actor. He appeared as Lando Calrissian in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, first in the early 1980s for ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (1980) and ''Return of the Jedi'' (1983), and thirt ...

. Khonsari broke onto the gaming scene with his work on ''

Grand Theft Auto III ''Grand Theft Auto III'' is a 2001 action-adventure game developed by DMA Design and published by Rockstar Games. It is the third main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 1999's ''Grand Theft Auto 2'', and the fifth instalment o ...

'' and ''

Max Payne ''Max Payne'' is a neo-noir third-person shooter video game series developed by Remedy Entertainment (''Max Payne'' and ''Max Payne 2'') and Rockstar Studios (''Max Payne 3''). The series is named after its protagonist, Max Payne, a New York Ci ...

'' when he joined

Rockstar Games Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...

in 2000. During his 5 years at

Khonsari was the cinematic director and built the production pipeline on ''

'', ''

Vice City ''Grand Theft Auto: Vice City'' is a 2002 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the fourth main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2001's ''Grand Theft Auto III'', and the s ...

'', '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', ''Max Payne'', ''Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne'', ''

Midnight Club II ''Midnight Club II'' is a racing video game developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sequel to '' Midnight Club: Street Racing'', published for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and Microsoft Windows and first in series to ...

'', ''

Manhunt Manhunt may refer to: Search processes * Manhunt (law enforcement), a search for a dangerous fugitive * Manhunt (military), a search for a high-value target by special operations forces or intelligence agencies Social organisations * Manhun ...

'', ''

Red Dead Revolver ''Red Dead Revolver'' is a 2004 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar Games. It is the first entry in the ''Red Dead'' series, and was released for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in May 2004. Set in the 1880 ...

'', '' Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition'', '' The Warriors'', '' Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories'' and '' Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories''. In 2006, he left

and has since worked on a number of games including ''

Alan Wake ''Alan Wake'' is an action-adventure game developed by Remedy Entertainment. The story follows best-selling thriller novelist Alan Wake as he tries to uncover the mystery behind his wife's disappearance during a vacation in the small fictional ...

'' and '' Homefront''. He met his wife, Vassiliki, while directing the award-winning documentary ''Pindemonium'', where she acted as the cinematographer and producer of this feature, which aired on the Sundance Channel. Together, Navid and Vassiliki co-founded iNK Stories and produced another documentary, ''Pulling John'', which premiered at

South by Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...

and streamed on Netflix. iNK Stories, is an independent entertainment company that is recognized for its bold, original voice in titles such as their 2016 launched '' 1979 Revolution: Black Friday''. 1979 Revolution: Black Friday receiving industry's top honors including BAFTA, Facebook Game of the Year, DICE, Indiecade, NY Game Critics, Tribeca FF Storyscape, Lumiere and recognized by UNESCO as a digital solution for peaceful conflict resolution - as a result, Khonsari was politically exiled by the government of

- deemed a US spy. Khonsari's subsequent titles, also lauded as innovative breakthroughs that reframe the human experience, including HERO (site-specific multi-sensory VR experience of civilian warfare in Syria) premiered at Sundance and

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

winning the Storyscape Award for Best Immersive, Blindfold premiering at

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, Fire Escape

––and currently Who is Michael Sterling? with Columbia and Standford. Working with Capcom, Khonsari worked on ''Resident Evil Biohazard'' both the console and VR versions. Khonsari is a juror and a member of the Peabody Interactive Board for the Peabody Awards.

Works

* ''

Hero (Multi-Sensory, Location Based VR) A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''hero ...

'' (2018) * ''

Fire Escape (VR Series) A fire escape is a special kind of emergency exit, usually mounted to the outside of a building or occasionally inside but separate from the main areas of the building. It provides a method of escape in the event of a fire or other emergency th ...

'' (2018) * '' Resident Evil 7: Biohazard'' (2017) * '' Blindfold (Interactive VR)'' (2017) * '' 1979 Revolution: Black Friday'' (2016) * '' Homefront'' (2011) * ''

'' (2010) * '' Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories'' (2006) * '' Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories'' (2005) * '' The Warriors'' (2005) * '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' (2004) * '' Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne - A Film Noir Love Story'' (2003) * '' Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition'' (2005) * ''

'' (2004) * ''

'' (2003) * ''

'' (2003) * '' Grand Theft Auto: Vice City'' (2002) (PlayStation 2) * ''

'' (2001) (PlayStation 2) * ''

'' (2001) (Xbox)

References

External links

Navid Khonsari's company iNK StoriesJoystiq.comIFC.comPulling John Website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Khonsari, Navid Living people Video game directors Iranian people in the video game industry 1970 births Writers from Montreal Writers from New York City People from Tehran University of British Columbia alumni Vancouver Film School alumni Iranian emigrants to Canada Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian male voice actors Video game writers Canadian documentary filmmakers Iranian documentary filmmakers Canadian graphic novelists Canadian voice directors Iranian voice directors