karina dandashi is a syrian-american filmmaker born and raised in pittsburgh pa. her films explore identity through the themes of familial love, grief, and sexuality in the arab-american diaspora. she loves being a thought daughter, pop culture, railroads, and libraries. karina was a 2021 sundance x adobe ignite fellow and featured in marie claire’s inaugural creators issue as one of the “top 21 creators to watch” in 2022. her feature script OUT OF WATER was chosen for the film independent 2023 screenwriting lab. she has been supported by organizations such as the jerome foundation, the colin higgins foundation, the muslim public affairs council, and the heinz endowments.

her short film COUSINS (2023) is a vimeo staff pick and streaming on the new yorker. her latest short BABA I’M FINE (2025) premiered at SXSW in march.