Peyman Moaadi (Persian: پیمان معادی) is an Iranian actor, screenwriter, and costume designer. He is best known for starring in Nader and Simin, A Separation, and About Elly. Peyman Moadi was born in 1972 in New York City in United States from an Iranian couple. His family moved back to Iran when he was five years old. He graduated in Metallurgical Engineering from Karaj Azad University. Moadi started his film career as a screenwriter in late 2000s. He is the writer of several famous Iranian films. He started his acting career in Asghar Farhadi's film About Elly (2009). Two years later, he received the Silver Bear award for Best Actor in Leading Role for his performance as Nader in Farhadi's A Separation (2011) from the Berlin International Film Festival.

Asghar Farhadi (Persian: اصغر فرهادی‎ Persian pronunciation: [æsɣæɾ fæɾhɒːdiː]; born 1 January 1972) is an Iranian film director and screenwriter. For his work as director, he has received one Golden Globe Award and one Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.He was named as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world by Time magazine in 2012.

Farhadi was born in Homayoonshahr (Khomeynishahr), Province of Isfahan. He is a graduate of Theatre, with a BA in Dramatic Arts and MA in Stage Direction from Tehran University and Tarbiat Modarres University, respectively. Farhadi made short 8mm and 16mm films in Isfahan branch of Iranian Young Cinema Society before moving on to writing plays and screenplays for IRIB. He also directed such TV series as A Tale of a City and co-wrote the screenplay of Ebrahim Hatamikia’s Low Heights. Dancing in the Dust was his feature film debut, which he followed with A Beautiful City.

His third film, Fireworks Wednesday won the Gold Hugo at the 2006 Chicago International Film Festival. His fourth film, About Elly won the Silver Bear for Best Director at 59th International Berlin Film Festival as well as Best Picture at Tribeca Film Festival. It is about a group of Iranians who take a trip to the Caspian Sea that turns tragic. Famous film theorist and film critic David Bordwell has called About Elly a masterpiece.

Kristen Jaymes Stewart (born April 9, 1990) is an American actress. She is best known for playing Bella Swan in The Twilight Saga. She has starred in other films, including Panic Room (2002), Zathura (2005), In the Land of Women (2007), The Messengers (2007), Adventureland (2009), The Runaways (2010), and Snow White and the Huntsman. She will star in upcoming films in 2012: On the Road and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2.

Stewart was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Her father, John Stewart, is a stage manager and television producer who has worked for Fox. Her mother, Jules Mann-Stewart, is a script supervisor originally from Maroochydore, Queensland, Australia. She has an older brother, Cameron Stewart, and an adopted brother, Taylor. Stewart attended school until the seventh grade and then continued her education by correspondence. She has since completed high school.

Her whole family all worked behind the camera and Stewart thought she would become a writer/director, but never considered being an actor. "I never wanted to be the center of attention – I wasn't that 'I want to be famous, I want to be an actor' kid. I never sought out acting, but I always practiced my autograph because I love pens. I'd write my name on everything." Stewart's acting career began at the age of eight, after an agent saw her perform in her elementary school's Christmas play. After a year of auditioning, Stewart's first role was a small nonspeaking part in the Disney Channel original film The Thirteenth Year. Then, she had another part in the film The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas as the "ring toss girl". She subsequently appeared in the independent film The Safety of Objects, in which she played the tomboy daughter of a troubled single mother (Patricia Clarkson). Stewart also played a tomboy in the film Panic Room, playing the diabetic daughter of a divorced mother (Jodie Foster). She was nominated for a Young Artist Award for her performance.

The Persian Gulf War (2 August 1990 – 28 February 1991), codenamed Operation Desert Storm (17 January 1991 – 28 February 1991) commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a UN-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.

The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf War, Gulf War I, or the Iraq War, before the term "Iraq War" became identified instead with the 2003 Iraq War (also referred to in the U.S. as "Operation Iraqi Freedom").

The invasion of Kuwait by Iraqi troops that began 2 August 1990 was met with international condemnation, and brought immediate economic sanctions against Iraq by members of the UN Security Council. U.S. President George H. W. Bush deployed American forces into Saudi Arabia, and urged other countries to send their own forces to the scene. An array of nations joined the coalition. The great majority of the military forces in the coalition were from the United States, with Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and Egypt as leading contributors, in that order. Around US$36 billion of the US$60 billion cost was paid by Saudi Arabia.

Leila Hatami (Persian: لیلا حاتمی ‎, born October 1, 1972) is an Iranian actress. She is the daughter of director Ali Hatami and actress Zari Khoshkam, and is married to actor Ali Mosaffa.

After finishing high school, she moved to Lausanne, Switzerland and started her studies in Electrical Engineering at École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). After two years she changed her major to French Literature. She completed her study of French in a couple of years, before moving back to Iran.

After a pause of a few years which included the continuation of her studies in Switzerland she made her professional entry into cinema with Dariush Mehrjui's film Leila. Her acting in this film received rave reviews from critics and audiences.

She married her co-star in Leila (Ali Mosaffa) in 1999. They have two children: a boy named Mani (born February 2007) and a girl named Asal (born October 2008).

She had a few short appearances during her childhood which included roles in Hezar Dastan TV series and Kamalolmolk movie, as well as a role in 1991 as a blind Turkish princess in Delshodegan.