Hadi P. Gharabaghi

Courses
Iran Arts Activism

Education
Ph.D., Cinema Studies, New York University, expected graduation: Jan. 2018
M.A., Cinema Studies, New York University
B.A., Visual Arts-Art History, University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC)
Large Format Photography, Montgomery Community College

Hadi Gharabaghi is completing his dissertation in Department of Cinema Studies at New York University. The title of his dissertation is: "Governing by Documentary: Syracuse Audiovisual Mission in Iran and the Region in 1950s, A Genealogy of Cultural Diplomacy." The project investigates institutionalization of documentary and audiovisual apparatus in 1950s in Iran, specifically, and the larger region by cultural foot soldiers of various American universities under a contract between Syracuse University and bi-national groups of government officials as a genealogical case study of Cold War cultural diplomacy. Through extensive research in archives of the United States Information Agency (USIA) and Margaret Mead's archives at the Library of Congress, among others, the project analyzes memoranda accounts of embassy reports of mobile screening, survey trips, how-to filmmaking among villagers, and workshops of training institutional media producers in Iran and beyond. Furthermore, the dissertation traces planning of Syracuse mission back to diverse practices sponsored by government and philanthropies in the United States including documentary production, and applied social science preparation of theory, public opinion surveys, production bible and manuals of national character and culture by Margaret Mead et al. Hadi has presented papers and organized events on governing investment in cultural diplomacy through institutionalization of documentary in Iran, on Iranian cinema, and on the formation of mid-century government-sponsored applied social science production of documentary bible, national character research, and manuals of culture and filmmaking. A notable event was "Poetics of Pedagogy in Revolution, A YouTube Screening and Discussion of First Case, Second Case (Abbas Kiarostami, 1979)", Jan. 2014.