Nino Kirtadze is a renowned director, celebrated for her empathetic approach to sensitive topics and her striking visual sense. Her feature-length documentaries tackle controversial subjects, focusing on the human element and crafting profound portraits of humanity. Her camera masterfully blends the ordinary and the extraordinary, eschewing romanticism in favor of a nuanced exploration of the human experience.
Kirtadze's films have garnered international recognition and numerous prestigious awards, including the World Cinema Best Director Prize at Sundance for "Durakovo-village of fools" (2008) and the European Film Academy Best Documentary Prize for "Pipeline next door" (2005),as well as the Grand Jury Prize and the John Templeton Award at Visions du REEL, Switzerland. Her other notable accolades include the Adolf Grimme Golden Prize in Germany for "Chechen Lullaby" (2002),the Golden Fipa in France for "Tell my friends that I'm dead" (2004),and the Cinema du Reel Louis Marcorelles Prize for the same film. Her documentary "Something about Georgia" won the Idee Suisse TSR Prize at Visions du Reel 2010.
Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, Kirtadze holds a degree in literature. Her script for a full-length feature film, "Monday", won the best script award from the Georgian Union of Cinematographers in 1991. She began her acting career with a lead role in "Chefin love", a film by Nana Djordjadze, which was selected at Cannes in 1996 and nominated for an Oscar. During the tumultuous 1990s in the Caucasus, she worked as a war correspondent for AFP and AP, covering the war in Chechnya and other armed conflicts in the region. Since 1997, Kirtadze has resided in France, collaborating with prominent directors such as Peter Brook, Jean-Pierre Ameris, Philippe Monnier, Claude Goretta, and Olivier Langlois.
As a member of the French writers' and directors' society La SCAM and the European Film Academy, Kirtadze regularly collaborates with national and international organizations as a consultant, jury, lecturer, and tutor.
