AKHMETELI 4 BY ARTCHIL KHETAGOURI Georgien 2006/07

"Akhmeteli 4" is a film about the universe of a block of flats in Tbilisi, Georgia. It's a personal documentary about the daily life in the neighborhood.
The director Artchil Khetagouri grew up in the Akhmeteli Street no. 4, but he has left his country more than ten years ago and went to live abroad.
With a camera in the hand he goes back to his hometown. All his neighbors receive him like one of them.
The director captures their daily lives, the surprises that make them happy, but also their hidden loneliness. Although there is not much hope for a better tomorrow, the neighbors are keeping their humor and simplicity.
Through the warm and intimate portraits of the people living in "Akhmeteli 4", the film becomes a larger image of life in nowadays Georgia.

ARTCHIL KHETAGOURI

Biography

Born on 29 April1970 in Gomi, Georgia.
From 1987 till 1992, Artchil Khetagouri studied aircraft engineering at the Technical University in Tbilisi. From 1999 till 2003 he studied in the directing class of the Netherlands Film and Television Academy "NFTA" in Amsterdam.
In 2002 he directed a medium length documentary: "Shining Shoes" (broadcast on YLE 2/ Finland). He graduated from the Netherlands Film & Television Academy with the short fiction film: "Heritage", which has won several awards and was broadcast on the Dutch public televisions "IKON" and "Kunstkanaal". The film was selected by the Rotterdam Film Festival and was screened in the cinemas in The Netherlands.
"Akhmeteli 4" (65 min., 2006) is his first feature documentary, awarded the "Prix Regards Neufs" at the Visions du Réel Int. Film Festival in 2007 and the First Prize in the Medium Length Competition of the Rodos Int. Film Festival (Ecofilms 2007).

Filmography

2006 / 2007 "Akhmeteli 4", documentary, 65 min.
produced by Art Doc & Ileana Stanculescu
"Regards Neufs" Award For The Best Debut at the Visions du réel International Film Festival 2007 (Nyon, Switzerland)
"First Prize - Medium Length Competition" Rodos Film Festival - Ecofilms 2007 (Greece)

Festivals:
Jihlava International Documentary Festival (Czech Republic)
Flahertiana International Documentary Film Festival 2007 (Russia)
Cronograf Int. Documentary Festival (Chisinau, Moldova), etc.

2003 "Heritage", short fiction film, 35 mm, 23 min.

Festivals
Selected by the Rotterdam Film Festival
Main award at the Frames-European Short Film Festival (Maastricht)
Main award and best image award at the International Debut Film Festival Tbilisi (Georgia)
Nomination for the Tuschinski Award at the Dutch National Film Festival (Utrecht)
The Netherlands Selection for the Student Oscar
broadcast on IKON-TV and KUNSTKANAAL (Dutch Public Broadcasters)

2002 "Shining Shoes"

documentary, video, 43 min.,
broadcast on YLE 2 (Finnish Public Television)