Elene Naveriani

Elene NAVERIANI (1985, Georgia) is a director, now living in Switzerland. They graduated from the Tbilisi State Academy of Art in monumental painting in 2003. After a Master’s in Critical Curatorial Cybermedia at the HEAD – Geneva (Geneva School of Art and Design), they started their studies in Cinema. Their graduation short film Gospel of Anasyrma (2014) was acclaimed for its distinctive signature and stance. Elene’s work makes invisible stories visible, unheard voices heard, and creates a space for marginalised lives. Elene practises a cinema of resistance.

In keeping with that line, their first feature I Am Truly a Drop of Sun on Earth (2017) premiered in Rotterdam and was awarded numerous prizes (Seoul, Xining, Valladolid, Porto). Elene also directed two further short films that received considerable acclaim. Red Ants Bite (2019) was nominated for the best Swiss short film award.

In 2021, their second feature film Wet Sand had its World Premiere in Locarno in August 2021 to glowing reviews and earned the Best Actor’s prize. Elene is currently developing two further feature-film projects.