Filmmaker · Scholar · Educator · Producer
SOHEL RAHMAN
Award-winning documentary filmmaker. Screened at Yale, UCLA, Durham, NYU, and 50+ institutions across 4 continents.
50+
30+
4
9
3
About
Filmmaker.
Scholar.
Director.
Sohel Rahman makes films about people the world has learned to look away from. His documentaries travel to the edges of human experience — into Rohingya refugee camps, onto Portuguese fruit farms, through the restless streets of Dhaka — and return with stories that linger long after the screen goes dark.
Trained across three European cities through the DocNomads European Joint Masters in Documentary Film Directing (Budapest, Brussels, Lisbon), his practice is built on deep immersion, ethnographic curiosity, and an unwavering belief in the dignity of his subjects.
He is the founder and CEO of DocMela and Vila Do Cinema — two companies dedicated to bringing socially engaged cinema to academic and cultural institutions worldwide.
Featured Work
"The Ice Cream Sellers"
2021 · 75 minutes · Documentary Feature
Best Feature Documentary — South Asian Film Festival, Montreal
Audience Choice Award — Tasveer South Asian Film Festival, Seattle
Filmography
Films & Work
9 films directed across 4 continents
⭐ Award Winner
The Ice Cream Sellers
2021 · 75 min
In Post-Production
Autopsy of a Genocide
2021–2025 · 75 min
In Production
The Old Man and The Tree
2024–2026 · Feature
Rohingya Crisis Response
2024 · 45 min
Songs From Another Eden
2018 · 30 min
⭐ Award Winner
A Passagem
2015 · 25 min
The Stranger
2013 · Short film
The Sketch
2013 · Short film
Undefeated
2011 · Short film
Podcast
In Conversation
On life, films, and human anthropology
"Sohel explores the intersection of documentary filmmaking, human stories, and social anthropology — in long-form conversations that go beyond the film."
Education & Speaking
Masterclasses & Lectures
Bringing socially engaged filmmaking into the classroom
“Sohel delivers masterclasses and lectures at universities, research institutes, and cultural institutions worldwide. Sessions blend theoretical insight with practical tools — inspiring students and researchers to harness documentary as a force for social change. Sessions are tailored to the host institution’s curriculum and research focus.”
Socially Engaged Filmmaking
How documentary becomes an instrument of advocacy, justice, and amplifying marginalized voices.
Documentary Directing
From concept and field research to the ethics of filming real lives and real communities.
Migration & Visual Storytelling
Representing displacement, identity, and belonging — responsibly and powerfully — on screen.
Script to Screen
The full documentary development process: research, access, structure, editing, and release.
Academic Film Distribution
How independent filmmakers can access universities and institutions as a meaningful distribution channel.
Suitable for undergraduate, postgraduate, and faculty audiences. Available in-person and online.
Global Reach
Universities & Institutions
“Sohel’s films and masterclasses have been presented at leading universities, museums, and cultural institutions across the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific.”
- Yale University
- UCLA
- New York University
- UC Berkeley
- University of Chicago
- Boston University
- Rutgers University
- Ohio State University
- University of Hawai'i at Mānoa
- University of Oregon
- University of Illinois
- Durham University
- University of Sussex
- Radboud University
- ISS The Hague
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
- Erasmus University Rotterdam
- University of Amsterdam
- Humboldt University Berlin
- University of Cologne
- Berlin Documentation Center
- Australian National University
- University of Lisbon
- Lusofona University
- Linköping University (Sweden)
- Palacký University Olomouc (Czech Republic)
- UFTA Budapest (Hungary)
- Chulalongkorn University (Thailand)