Lara Panah-Izadi studied math and philosophy at Yale University before working on the sets of notable Hollywood directors including Barry Levinson, Quentin Tarantino, and David Fincher. In 2017, she directed and edited her first narrative short fim, the psychological thriller Chloe. That same year, she moved to Los Angeles to work in creative development at Paramount Television. Her second short, The Summer of Snakes (2021), a biographical drama inspired by the life of artist Niki de Saint Phalle, has won awards at numerous European and American festivals. She recently completed the Serial Eyes residency at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin. Her latest short film, Normal, was funded by the Kering Foundation. She is currently working on developing her first feature film, which she will shoot in Morocco soon, and two series.