BIO-FILMOGRAPHY
Ishtar Yasin Gutiérrez is a Costa Rican, Chilean, Iraqi filmmaker , writer and actress. Born in Moscow, within a family of artists. After the military coup in Chile, Ishtar as a child, took refuge with her family in Costa Rica, where she studied in the artistic school Conservatorio Castella.
The exile of her parents from Iraq and Chile marked her fate. She has worked as a filmmaker and actress in different cities and countries around the world: Costa Rica, Moscow, France, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Damascus, Iraq, Lebanon, Chile, Argentina, Nicaragua, Haiti and Mexico.
She studied in the Moscow Cinema Institute VGIK where she obtains a Master of Arts (1985-1991). She starred the feature film "Full Moon" in Kazakhstan, directed by Naana Tchankova, and she play in the film "Wahts going on" by Jocelyne Saab, in Lebanon.
In 1992, she founded the independent theater company, Teatro Ambar, where she works as a writer, actress or director of "Noche Cadabra", "Agonize with elegance", “Earth Prayer” "Tree of Hope" “Do you understand me?”. With these works she makes an extensive tour in Cultural Centers, Educational Centers, Universities, International Festivals and Theaters in Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Mexico, United States, Colombia and Denmark.
In 1998 Ishtar created Astarté Films and until now she direct and produce short, medium-length, and feature films.
In 2004 she obtained a residence in the Centre d’Ecriture Cinematographique CECI in Normandy, France.
In 2008 her first feature film “El Camino” was premiered in the Official Competition of FORUM in the Berlin International Film Festival, 2008. This film won 15 international awards and was selected in more than 50 international festivals around the world, among them, Cannes, Locarno and Mar del Plata.
“El camino” was invited in Important universities, including Harvard, Richmond, Ohio, Brown, Northridge, among others. Also at the LASA Latin American Studies Congress, in Toronto, Canada.
In 2010, Ishtar traveled to Haiti and filmed the documentary "Les Invisibles", a month after the earthquake that shook that country. This film was part of the Selection of the International African Film Festival in Spain FCAT; the International Festival “Resistencia Cultural” in Lebanon, the Arts Doc Festival in Mexico City, among others.
Her second feature film “Dos Fridas”, was premiered in 2018, in the Main Competition of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. This film won 12 internationals awards and was selected in more than 30 International Film Festivals around the world, among them, Shanghai International Film Festival, Amiens International Film Festival and La Mostra de Valencia, XV Muestra de Cine Iberoaméricano.
At present, Ishtar is working on her third feature film, the creative documentary "My lost country". This film obtained artisticconsultancies in DocsBarcelona and DoxBox.
Ishtar Yasin has published poems and stories in anthologies of Central American literature. She gives workshops and master classes on filmmaking, directing and acting at film schools, cultural centers and universities in Costa Rica, Mexico, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Spain, Egypt, and Iraq.
FILMOGRAPHY:
1999 “Florencia of the Deep Rivers and the Big Sharks” Short film
2004 “Lárbre jaune” Short film
2005 “The Happy Table” Medium-Length film
2008 “The Path” Feature film
2010 “The Invisibles” Medium- length film
2012 “Exquisite Corpse” Short film
2013 “The wounded table” Short film
2014 “Underworld” Short film
2014 “Apocalypse of Our Time” Medium-Length film
2018 “Two Fridas” Feature film
2020 “Be an animal” Short Film
2021 “Grandma's songs” Short Film
2021 “Mohsen of Irak” (in post-production)
2022 “Crepuscular” (in development)
AWARDS:
First award in the National Acting Contest, “Pushkin”, 1986, Moscow, 1986.
National Theater Award, for the production “Agonice con elegancia” (Dying with elegance), Costa Rica, 1994.
National Dramatic Art Award by the National Theater Company of Costa Rica for the production “Los que pintan el cielo”, 1997.
Award to the best cinematographic script “Florencia de los ríos hondos y los tiburones grandes” by the Center of Cinema Production in Costa Rica and the Women Institute, 1998.
EL CAMINO
Special Jury Award
Fribourg International Film Festival
Switzerland, 2008.
Ecumenic Jury Award
Fribourg Film Festival
Switzerland, 2008.
FIPRESCI Award
International Federation of Film Critics
Guadalajara International Film Festival
Mexico 2008
Special Jury Mention
Best Iberoamerican Film
Guadalajara International Film Festival
Mexico, 2008
Rail D'Oc Award
Rencontres Cinéma d'Amérique Latine
Toulouse, France, 2008
Best Latin American Film Award
Santiago International Film Festival
SANFIC
Chile, 2008
Roberto "Tato" Miller S.I.C.A. Award
Best Latin-American Film
Mar del Plata International Film Festival
Argentina, 2008
Jury Special Award
Central American Film Festival ICARO
Guatemala,2008
Best Director Award
Central American Film Festival ICARO
Guatemala, 2008
Best Actress Award
Central American Film Festival ICARO
Guatemala,2008
Best Actress Award
Punta del Este International Film Festival
Uruguay, 2008
Best Iberoamerican Film Award
Casa America of Catalonia
International Gibara Film Festival
Cuba, 2008
Best Latin American Film Award
International Gibara Film Festival
Cuba, 2008
Signis Award
Guadalajara International Film Festival
(Film in progress)
México, 2007
Ruben Gámez Award
Guadalajara International Film Festival,
Mexico, 2007
DOS FRIDAS
Lucía Award
Best Director
Gibara International Film Festival
Cuba, 2019
Lucía Award
Best Cinematography
Gibara International Film Festival
Cuba, 2019
Ícaro Award
Best Film
International Film Festival in Central America
Guatemala 2019
Ícaro Award
Best Director
International Film Festival of Central America
Guatemala, 2019
Ícaro Award
Best Cinematography
International Film Festival in Central America Guatemala, 2019
Ícaro Award
Best Art Direction
International Film Festival in Central America
Guatemala, 2019
Best Art Direction Award
Gramado International Film Festival
Brasil, 2019
Special Mention
St. Petersburg Independent Film Festival
Rusia, 2019
Rachmaninov Space Art Award
St. Petersburg Independent Film Festival
Rusia, 2019
Special Mention
International Film Festival El ojo cojo
Madrid, España, 2020
Remi Golden Award
Best Experimental Film
53rd Annual World Fest-Houston
Texas, USA, 2020
Audience Award
Best Film
Central American Film Festival
Viena, Austria, 2020
MY LOST COUNTRY
Festival Internacional de Cine de El Cairo
Egipto, 2021