Director Saim Sadiq has been signed by the Creative Artists Agency (CAA), one of the biggest agencies in America.
This puts him in the company of A-list actors and industry legends such as Zendaya, Tom Hanks, Samuel L. Jackson, Pete Davidson, Ellen DeGeneres, Ryan Murphy, Steven Spielberg, Allison Williams, and A$AP Rocky, among others. Sadiq gained recognition with the release of his drama film Joyland and was also named on Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” list for 2023.
After directing the acclaimed drama film Joyland, Sadiq has earned great recognition, including being named to Variety’s 10 Directors to Watch list for 2023. Joyland, the first Pakistani film ever to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival 2022, received a standing ovation from the jury and was honoured with the Un Certain Regard award and the Queer Palm.
The film has also been nominated for Best International Film at the Independent Spirit Awards 2023 and has made history by being shortlisted for the same category at the 95th Academy Awards 2023.
Joyland is backed by Pakistani activist and youngest Nobel Prize laureate, Malala Yousafzai and British-Pakistani Oscar and Emmy-winning artist, Riz Ahmed. The duo boarded Sadiq’s award-winning film as executive producers.
Other than Junejo and Khan, the film stars Sania Saeed, Sarwat Gilani, Rasti Farooq, Salman Peerzada, and Sohail Samir in pivotal roles.
Joyland is a story of the sexual revolution that follows the journey of the youngest son in a patriarchal family. He defies the family’s expectation of having a baby boy with his wife and instead joins an erotic dance theatre. There, he falls in love with the troupe’s director, a transgender woman.
