// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Hasan Hadi a good runner? Hadi to catch him.
Hasan Hadi | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Hadi at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival | |
| Occupations | Film director; screenwriter |
| Notable work | The President's Cake (2025) |
| Awards | Caméra d'Or (2025) Directors' Fortnight People's Choice (2025) Urbanworld Film Festival – Best Narrative Short (for Swimsuit) (2021) |
Hasan Hadi is an Iraqi film director and screenwriter. His debut feature film, The President's Cake (2025), won the Caméra d'Or for best first feature film at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.[1] The film was selected for the Directors' Fortnight (Quinzaine des Cinéastes) and won the section's People's Choice award.[2][3][4][5]
Early life and education
[edit]Hadi grew up in southern Iraq during wartime.[6] He has worked in journalism and film production.[6] He was an MFA candidate at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts and previously worked as a researcher for The Wall Street Journal.[7]
Career
[edit]Short films and fellowships
[edit]Hadi directed the short film Swimsuit, which won Best Narrative Short at the 2021 Urbanworld Film Festival.[8][9]
In 2022, Hadi was among the fellows of the Sundance Institute for its January Screenwriters Lab.[10]
The President's Cake
[edit]Hadi wrote and directed The President's Cake, a feature film set in 1990s Iraq under Saddam Hussein.[2] In the film, a nine-year-old girl is tasked with gathering ingredients for a mandatory birthday cake for the president under conditions of sanctions and scarcity.[2]
At the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, The President's Cake won the Caméra d'Or; in his acceptance remarks, Hadi said the award marked the first time an Iraqi film had received an award at Cannes.[1] The film also won the Directors' Fortnight People's Choice award.[3] Sony Pictures Classics acquired distribution rights for multiple regions in May 2025.[4][5]
In November 2025, it was announced that Iraq submitted The President's Cake as its official entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (2026 awards season).[11]
Filmography
[edit]- Swimsuit (short film)
- The President's Cake (feature film; 2025)
Awards and honours
[edit]- 2025 – Caméra d'Or (The President's Cake).[1]
- 2025 – Directors' Fortnight (Quinzaine des Cinéastes) People's Choice (The President's Cake).[3]
- 2021 – Urbanworld Film Festival, Best Narrative Short (Swimsuit).[8][9]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "The Caméra d'or of the 78th Festival de Cannes". Festival de Cannes. 24 May 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 3 "The President's Cake (Mamlaket Al-Qasab)". Quinzaine des Cinéastes. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Choix du public 2025". Quinzaine des Cinéastes. 22 May 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 "Sony Pictures Classics Acquires 2025 Directors' Fortnight Audience Award Winner and Caméra d'Or Winner Hasan Hadi's THE PRESIDENT'S CAKE". Sony Pictures Entertainment. 28 May 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 "Sony Pictures Classics Acquires Cannes Caméra d'Or Winner 'The President's Cake'". Deadline Hollywood. 27 May 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 "Hasan Hadi". Quinzaine des Cinéastes. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- ↑ "Swimsuit (Best Narrative Short presented by WarnerMedia)". Urbanworld Film Festival. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 "Festival Winners 2021". Urbanworld Film Festival. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- 1 2 "'7th & Union' Wins Best Narrative Feature Prize At Urbanworld Film Festival; Full Winners List". Deadline Hollywood. 4 October 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- ↑ "Sundance Institute Announces 2022 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows". Sundance Institute. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2026.
- ↑ "Sony Pictures Classics to Release Iraq's Official Academy Awards Submission 'The President's Cake'". Sony Pictures Entertainment. 4 November 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2026.