ISE. Multi-Academy Award winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will be the opening speaker at ISE 2024. Best known for her Oscar-winning documentary short films Saving Face and A Girl In The River: The Price Of Forgiveness, Obaid-Chinoy is the first Pakistani filmmaker to win an Oscar and the first female film director to win two Oscars at the age of 37.
She has also received four Emmy Awards, a Knight International Journalism Award, the Hilal-e-Imtiaz, Pakistan's second highest civilian award, and was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine.
Storytelling is closely linked to the audiovisual industry and influences all elements of ISE 2024. Almost every facet of the AV industry is driven by storytelling, such as immersive experiences at tourist attractions, inspiring presentations from business leaders, and engaging advertising campaigns delivered through digital signage.
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy exemplifies how storytelling can inspire, inform and shape the future of audiovisual innovation and its diverse markets, and her announcement as the opening speaker of ISE 2024 underlines its importance to the audiovisual industry.
"We are delighted to have Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy deliver the keynote address at ISE 2024; promises to be a compelling, thought-provoking speaker," said Mike Blackman, Managing Director of Integrated Systems Events. "As an innovator, pioneer and advocate for positive change, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has made a huge impact on her industry and society at large."
Throughout her career, Obaid-Chinoy has taken creative action to influence social change. In 2016, after winning the Oscar for A Girl In The River: The Price Of Forgiveness, which tackled the controversial topic of honor killings, Obaid-Chinoy was invited to meet with the Prime Minister of Pakistan. The meeting eventually contributed to the adoption of the draft law on honour killings.
After migrating to narrative filmmaking, Obaid-Chinoy directed two pivotal episodes of the acclaimed Ms. Marvel series in 2022. The series told the story of the first Muslim character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Pakistani-American teenager Kamala Khan. The New York Times included his episodes in its annual list of best television episodes.
This year it was announced that Obaid-Chinoy would be the first woman to direct a Star Wars film. The film will star Daisy Ridley and is scheduled for release in 2026.
The ISE 2024 keynote address, by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, will take place on Tuesday 30 January. More information on the ISE 2024 Conference Programme and 20th anniversary events will be announced soon.
Registration for ISE 2024 is now open. Visit https://www.iseurope.org
