Inspired by his experience as a first-generation Afghan American, Daniel’s work often explores and celebrates underrepresented communities.
View DocumentaryAs a photographer, Daniel specializes in documentary and commercial work. He has shot commissioned projects for Nike, Vogue, Taschen, Spotify, FUJIFILM, and Porsche with iconic personalities like Drake, Marshmello, Will Ferrell, and Snoop Dogg.
View CommercialAs a filmmaker, he’s directed commercials for Mercedes-Benz, FUJIFILM, Adidas, PUMA and Sony and produced a feature length documentary for Amazon Prime Video. His projects have received ADDY awards, an MTV VMA nomination and a Tribeca Film Festival selection.
View FilmsDaniel Malikyar (b. 1995, Los Angeles, CA) is an Afghan-American photographer and filmmaker based in Los Angeles. His curiosity for different ways of living has inspired projects in 45 countries and 5 continents.
In 2015, he was selected as the youngest official FUJIFILM X-Photographer in the world. He has represented the brand on a global scale through print exhibitions, speaking events, billboards, and commercial campaigns.
In 2016, Malikyar became the Creative Director for multi-platinum artist, Marshmello. For 4 years he directed the creative strategy and production of the artists visual content including 15 short films. During that time, Marshmello’s YouTube subscribers grew from 25k to 45 million.
In 2017, he co-founded production company and creative agency, MGX CREATIVE, where his branded projects have received over 5 billion YouTube views. MGX has also produced feature documentaries for Amazon Prime Video and YouTube Originals.
In 2020, Malikyar co-founded fine art gallery, Santo where he has released original fine art print collaborations with Mercedes-Benz and prolific Porsche collector, Magnus Walker. Santo represents a select roster of photographers and has collectors in over 25 countries.
Recently, Malikyar was commissioned by Taschen for their upcoming book, Ice Cold: A Hip Hop Jewelry History releasing globally in September, 2022.
His work has been seen in magazines, television, and billboards around the world with features in Vogue, The NY Times, ABC, and Hypebeast.
View PressDaniel’s clients are industry leaders across popular culture.