Meet Vida Ghaffari

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vida Ghaffari.

Vida, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Even though I was born and raised in the Washington DC area, I’m a proud Angeleno, and several generations of my family have lived here. I studied Theatre and Journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park, which is one of the largest universities in the states. These days, I’m a working SAG-AFTRA actress who is continually working on improving my craft and growing as an artist.

Has it been a smooth road?
Being typecast was a big problem initially. I had to deal with racism and reverse racism. I was either offered only Middle Eastern roles where I played subservient women, or I was told I wasn’t dark complected enough to play certain roles that I was cast for and had to deal with already stressed out makeup artists completely switching up my look on set.

I had one manager tell me a few years ago that “I already have my token Middle Easterner” when he found out my ethnicity. It was beyond bizarre. Thankfully with the onslaught of ethnically ambiguous casting and being that times have changed, I now play various ethnicities and even Caucasian roles!

There’s also more opportunities for women and minorities, not enough as there should be, but vast improvements have been made.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
I’m very blessed to be a multi-award-winning actress and have been bestowed with awards by the City of Los Angeles, The West LA Chamber of Commerce, The Panorama City Chamber of Commerce, Los Angeles Nollywood Awards, Lucky Strikes Film Festival, the Universe Multicultural Film Festival, and many others.

I typically playing strong, independent and intelligent women and that’s what I’m most proud of, as it inspires young women today in an industry that can often unfortunately sexually exploit women. My range of characters and various accents in my toolkit have set me apart from others. I’m also a voice over artist, so I have a lot more options.

As for current projects, I just recently wrapped the last film in the popular Meathook Massacre horror franchise, the much anticipated Meathook Massacre: The Final Chapter, which was directed by well-known cult filmmaker Dustin Ferguson. I play the role of Samantha, who is trying to help her troubled sister, who is the only survivor of the massacre, put her life back together. I’m also in pre-production for Ferguson’s Los Angeles Shark Attack and Moon of the Blood Beast.

I have three feature film world premieres coming up this year: multi-award-winning filmmaker Harley Wallen’s sci-fi action film Abeyance (opposite Scout Taylor-Compton of Rob Zombie’s Halloween 1 & 2, Richard Tyson of Black Hawk Down, Billy Wirth of The Lost Boys, Mel Novak of Quentin Tarantino favorite Game of Death, Kaiti Wallen of Betrayed, and Yan Birch of Wes Craven’s The People Under the Stairs) where I play Nikita, a brilliant and cutting-edge scientist; frequent collaborator Ferguson’s sci-fi thriller film Robowoman where I play the role of Hannah, a whip-smart and courageous medical researcher; and Levin Garbisch’s fantasy mystery film Miranda Veil, where I play Alice Veil, a successful, workaholic mother who may or may not be what she seems.

I’m also recurring on John Alsedek’s three-time Peabody Award nominated Suspense Show on XM satellite radio, which records out of Melrose Music at Raleigh Studios.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and the least?
I love all the different cultures and how that is reflected in all the various artists out here. I also love the weather here, though it’s been unseasonably cold this past winter! I also really like the sense of community here, even though it’s such a large city and I try to be of service when I can, which really helps LA feel smaller. I’m been active with a number of charities such as 826 LA, the NOH8 Campaign and the Midnight Mission. I’ve also hosted charity fashion shows for Artists For Trauma (AFT), Moda 360, Love Your Body Events, Fundraiser for Haiti Relief and countless other charities. I’ve also moderated panels for Wonder Women Tech (WWT), Scare LA, the Film Society and many others.

The one thing I can’t stand is the traffic here and how it takes an eternity to even go five miles on the 405 freeway at times! During rush hour, everything moves at a snail’s pace.

Contact Info:

• Website: imdb.me/vidaghaffari
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vidaghaffari/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialvidaghaffari/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/VidaGhaffari

Image Credit:
Universe Multicultural Film Festival, Dan Kennedy, J Novak, Mindy Kaling, Brinke Stevens  Bob Delgadillo, Jake Busey, Guillermo Proano/PR Photos, Abeyance, Richard Tyson Michael Paré, Yakof Smirnoff, Albert L. Ortega/Gettyimages

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.