KTLA

Vida Ghaffari, Actress | Spoken Dreams

Bobby Gonzalez

Vida Ghaffari is an actress originally from the Washington, D.C. area. Her father was a scientist and her mother, an artist and art teacher. Vida is of Iranian descent and grew up during a time where anti-Iranian sentiment was prevalent in the United States. She was bullied in school, and therefore felt most comfortable on the stage exploring different characters. As an adult, Vida would land in the journalism field, and that would ultimately take her from D.C. to Los Angeles working in Persian TV.

The television journalism opportunities led to some voice over work, but Vida was still drawn to performing. As she sought more acting opportunities, she began to notice the types of roles she was booking: Hijab Woman #1…Muslim Lady #3. Those roles were often diminutive, silent, and racist. Vida would be challenged, not as an artist, but as an Iranian-American wishing to explore characters with more depth in an industry notorious for perpetuating stereotypes. Fortunately, Vida would eventually find what she’s been looking for in a way that has brought everything full-circle.

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