Kamal John Iskander is an award winning writer and director whose films have screened in film festivals across the globe as well as lauded and reviewed in a variety of renowned cinema publications, journals, and blogs such as indieWIRE, Fangoria, Film Threat, and Starburst Magazine. His work has placed in prestigious competitions, most notably the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences Nicholl Fellowship.

Iskander produced and directed the award winning short film, Jesus Comes To Town which competed in 30 international film festivals and won 7 awards, including the Cine Golden Eagle (Cine Foundation), Best Director (Magnolia Independent Film Festival), Programmer’s Award for Best Short Narrative (Virginia Film Festival), and the EICAR Jury Prize (Cinérail Paris). Distributed by Shorts International, it currently plays on Direct TV’s ShortsHD channel. Film Threat called Jesus Comes To Town, "Black and white neo-noir glory... a delight to behold!"

Iskander won Best International Screenplay at the Oaxaca FilmFest Global Script Challenge, sponsored and judged by Final Draft, for his feature length dark comedy script The Gospel According To Charlie which went on to become a quarterfinalist in the Academy Nicholl Fellowship. His work on screenplay Clandestino earned an Academy Nicholl Fellowship semifinalist placement. 

His screenplay Montreal Girls was a Scriptapalooza quarterfinalist and Oaxaca FilmFest Global Script Challenge finalist. Directed and co-written by Patricia Chica, it was funded by SODEC and TELEFILM Canada and produced by Objectif 9 and Film Option International. With its World Premiere at Cinequest 2022, Montreal Girls went on to win BEST FEATURE at the Los Angeles International Film Festival, BEST DEBUT FEATURE at the Female Eye Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, and BEST DIRECTOR at the Academy Qualifying Rhode Island International Film Festival. Montreal Girls was nominated for BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY at the 2024 Canadian Screen Awards (Canadian Academy Awards).

DEADLINE HOLLYWOOD announced at EFM that Level 33 Entertainment “Takes U.S. Rights for Montreal Girls” including theatrical. Film Threat’s review states “Montreal Girls is as much a visual and sonic poem as it is narrative storytelling. SCORE 8/10.” The LOS ANGELES TIMES review states, “Montréal Girls emerges as a vivid, immersive paean to artistic expression and youth’s unhindered possibilities.” Montreal Girls currently maintains a 100% ROTTEN TOMATOES score several weeks after its release, and is currently available on most major streamers.

Iskander directed his play Stockholm Syndrome for the 2023 HOLLYWOOD FRINGE FESTIVAL. It was produced by J. BOTHWELL PRODUCTIONS and featured Joey Bothwell (Natty Knocks) and Ohad Bitton (Mark Mary & Some Other People). In its review, NOHO ARTS DISTRICT.COM states “the show itself is a blast. A psychology-tickling, chuckle-inducing, dark comedy that engages its audience with witty, conversational humor — before slowly pulling back the curtain on some demonically delightful intrigue.”

His horror/sci-fi screenplay, Jowls was a semifinalist in the 15th annual Shriekfest Film Festival Screenplay Competition. Iskander's horror-comedy Octopad placed as a finalist in the Filmmatic Horror Awards, semifinalist in ScreenCraft's Horror Screenplay Competition and Screamfest Film Festival’s Screenplay Competition as well as quarterfinalist in Scriptapalooza. It was optioned by Prime-Time Emmy winner Aaron Osborne who is attached to direct. His screenplay Diabolina was selected to participate in the 2nd annual Athens Film Office Owl Screenwriting Lab in Athens, Greece.

His short horror comedy, A Tricky Treat, written for award winning Canadian director Patricia Chica, opened at the Fantasia Film Festival in Montreal. It was called “deliciously vile” by Fangoria, “a fantastic story,” by UK Horror Scene, and “a dainty little treat,” by Horror Movies Uncut. Reviewed in over a dozen cinema blogs and publications including indieWIRE and Starburst Magazine, it screened at Screamfest, Dragon*Con, Mile-High Horror Film Festival, Lund International Fantastisk Fest in Sweden, Telluride Horrorshow Film Festival, and Morbido Film Festival in Mexico among other international cinema events. It is currently featured on Eli Roth's CRYPT TV, where it was viewed by well over a quarter-million horror fans.

Iskander lives in Los Angeles and has written over a dozen screenplays. He is also looking forward to producing and directing his award winning, Nicholl Fellowship quarterfinalist feature script, The Gospel According to Charlie.