Mehran Abdollahi is a PhD student in the Cinema and Media Studies program at UBC. He received a Master of Arts in English from UBC, where he researched plantation slavery models and their lingering legacies in American Gothic films. His current research synthesizes Critical Plant Studies, Surveillance Studies, and Film Philosophy with a particular focus on decolonizing the works of Jean Baudrillard and Gilles Deleuze, investigating the relations between racialization, vegetality, and hyperreality in the transition from celluloid cinematography to digital cameras.

Mehran has also co-produced various essay films, including the mockumentary The Lighthouse; A Film By Robert J. Flaherty, which premiered in the 57th Pesaro Film Festival and made Sight & Sound’s list of Best Video Essays of 2021.