Tell us a bit about yourself - all the basics! Where you’re from, where you grew up, interests, hobbies, siblings, causes you’re passionate about, anything else that comes to mind…

I was born and raised in Sumgait, a city near Baku. Built by the Soviets, Sumgait became known internationally for its industry, pollution, and dark past. Growing up surrounded by Soviet panel buildings influenced my imagination, making me see the world in frames.

Then I studied journalism in Georgia, and since then, the South Caucasus has felt like home. I dream of seeing the region united—a sort of holy trinity.

How did you become interested in film? What has influenced your work as a filmmaker the most? A person, an educator, another filmmaker, a film itself, an experience, etc.?

My lecturer, and now a dear friend, Nino Orjonikidze, a remarkable Georgian documentarian, is the one I "blame" for my love of documentary film.

It wasn’t planned—it began with the pleasure of seeing the world through a lens, observing little details often overlooked, and simply enjoying the process of following them.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what might you be? What did you want to do or be growing up?

Being a filmmaker is already so interesting and challenging—it makes me feel alive. But if not filmmaking, I’d want to cook.

I’m not one to follow recipes; instead, I love intuitive improvisation. I’d open a small, home-style café with my own creations, which I like to call “South Caucasian.” Svanetian salt (a Georgian salt mixed with mountain herbs) is the essential ingredient in my dishes—I carry it with me everywhere, adding it along with other little secrets from my imagination.

In a way, documentaries work like that too. Sometimes you just take random ingredients and blend them.

What accomplishment thus far are you most proud of?

As a child, I was incredibly shy, humble, and fearful. Every comment from strangers would make me blush, turning me bright red. It might have been cute to others, but I never liked it—especially since people would constantly point it out, which only made it worse. But I’m grateful to have grown up with a love for life and people, with curiosity and openness toward others. I could have turned out differently. Now, when I reflect on that small, shy version of myself, I think, “You did great.”