Olivia Khoshatefeh grew up outside of Boston, MA. She went on to study acting at the University of Rhode Island and got her MFA from Brown University/Trinity Rep. Olivia is Persian-American and draws just as much inspiration from her Middle Eastern heritage as she does her life growing up in New England. A life full of Boston Red Sox superstitions and ancient Zoroastrian customs cultivated the unique perspective she has today. No single label or characteristic can fully define who someone is, and Olivia finds creative inspiration in nuanced experiences. As a writer Olivia experiments with a mixture of contemporary and heightened language. She uses social commentary and humor to encourage you to think outside the box. Her writing explores themes of self-discovery focusing on female protagonists. In 2024/5 she was invited to participate in a production lab with Cinephilia Productions where she developed and packaged her feature film 'what R u?' Olivia is a member of the SWANA writer's co-op. As an actor she’s appeared in several recurring television roles, most notably on New Amsterdam (NBC) for five seasons. Other TV credits include: Elsbeth (CBS), Inventing Anna (Netflix), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix), Dickinson (Apple TV), Mr. Robot (USA) and The Blindspot (NBC). Olivia lives in NYC with her dog Dolly and loves to garden and cook in her free time.
