Rufat Hasanov

Rufat Hasanov
Rüfət Həsənov
Rufat Hasanov in Sarajevo Film Festival, 2019
Born (1987-04-24) April 24, 1987
Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, USSR
Other namesRu Hasanov
Alma materBates College
Occupation(s)Director, producer, film editor
Notable workThe Island Within
AwardsBest Director, Sarajevo Film Festival

Rufat "Ru" Hasanov (Azerbaijani: Rüfət Həsənov; born 24 April 1987[1]) is an Azerbaijani film director, producer, editor, and a voting member of the European Film Academy.[2]

Early life and education

Born in Azerbaijan, Hasanov completed his secondary education at Quakertown Senior High School in Pennsylvania, graduating in 2003. He earned a B.A. in Theatre with a minor in Russian Studies from Bates College[2] in Maine (2005–2009). While at Bates, he took part in Black Factory, a landmark community performance project by William Pope.L.[3] Hasanov went on to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Directing for Film & TV from the Higher Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors (HCFDS) in Moscow,[2] graduating in 2012.

Career

After Bates, Hasanov joined Vice Media (then VBS.tv) in New York in 2009, working across editorial and production. In 2010 he moved to Moscow and directed promotional and interstitial content at TV Rain. Later in life, Hasanov attended Berlinale Talents and the EAVE (European Audiovisual Entrepreneurs) Producers Workshop[2] before first attracting international attention with his debut feature Chameleon (2013)[4] which earned a Golden Leopard nomination at the Locarno Film Festival.[2]

He went on to edit high-profile projects—collaborating with directors such as Bakur Bakuradze, Natalya Merkulova and Alexey Chupov. His second feature, The Island Within (2020),[5][6] won Best Director at the Sarajevo Film Festival,[7] received the International Jury Prize at Festival Nouvelles Images Persanes (Vitré), and was Azerbaijan’s submission for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.[8]

Starting in 2014, he has worked as a director at the Azerbaijanfilm studio. In 2019 he became CEO of Debut Film Studios, where he launched InterAct,[9] a film laboratory supporting production, post-production, distribution, and funding for emerging filmmakers. In 2020 Hasanov joined the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan as Head of the Cinema Department (later Audiovisual & Interactive Media),[10] overseeing the establishment of ARCA and serving as interim CEO[2] from 2022 to 2023, as well as founding Filming Azerbaijan, the country’s first national film commission.[10]

Since 2023, Hasanov has been engaged with the innovative Screenlife format at Bazelevs Company, the Hollywood studio founded by Timur Bekmambetov. In 2025 he was selected as a Fellow at the Central Asia–Caucasus Institute in Washington, D.C.[11]

Teaching and training

Hasanov has taught filmmaking since 2008, beginning as a visiting instructor at Rangeley Lakes Regional School in Maine, leading workshops at Summer Media Studio in Lithuania (2015), and serving on the faculty of the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts and YARAT Contemporary Art Space in Baku.

Filmography

Year Title Director Writer Producer Editor Notes
2009 Force Majeure Yes Yes Yes Yes Short
2010 O, Sortie! Yes Yes No Yes Documentary
2012 012 Yes Yes No Yes Documentary
2013 Chameleon Yes Yes No Yes
2014 My Grief is Light Yes Yes No Yes Short
2017 No Such Thing Yes Yes Yes Yes
2020 The Island Within Yes Yes Yes Yes
2025 Thomas Goltz: An Oil Odyssey Yes Yes Yes Yes Documentary
TBA Small in Japan Yes Yes No Yes

As producer

  • Small in Japan (TBA)
  • Thomas Goltz: An Oil Odyssey (2025)
  • Two Days (2023) (uncredited)
  • Orizuru (2022)
  • Gokhuroba (2020) (uncredited)
  • The Island Within (2020)
  • No Such Thing (2017)
  • Shanghai, Baku (2016)
  • My Grief Is Light (2014)[12]
  • Chameleon (2013)
  • 012 (2012)
  • O, Sortie! (2010)[13]
  • Force Majeure (2009)[13]

As editor

  • Dative Case Problem (2026) (post-production)
  • Red Color of the Second Planet (2024) (uncredited)
  • Heartbreath (2021) (uncredited)
  • Salt, Pepper to Taste (2019)
  • It Means Love (2018)
  • Sea of Tranquility (2017)
  • The Trial: The State of Russia vs Oleg Sentsov (2017)
  • A Lullaby for Yuki (2016)
  • Sisters (2016)
  • Shanghai, Baku (2016)
  • Fedor’s Journey Through Moscow at the Turn of the 21th-century (2015)
  • Rodchenko’s Stairs (2015)
  • Brother Dejan (2015)
  • Anthill (2015)
  • The Wound (2014)
  • Tekbetek (2014)
  • Defocusin (2013)
  • Intimate Parts (2013)
  • Marina’s House (2012)

Awards and recognition

Awards

  • Best Director, Sarajevo Film Festival (The Island Within, 2020)[7]
  • International Jury Prize, Festival Nouvelles Images Persanes, Vitré (The Island Within, 2020)[14]
  • VGIK Summer Film Festival (O, Sortie!, 2010)

Official submissions

Nominations & festival selections

Chameleon (2013)

  • Debut competition selection, Spirit of Fire International Debut Film Festival (Russia)

The Island Within (2020)

  • Main Competition selection, Sarajevo Film Festival (Bosnia and Herzegovina)[5]
  • International Jury Prize winner, Festival Nouvelles Images Persanes, Vitré (France)[14]
  • Official selection, Black Movie – Geneva International Independent Film Festival (Switzerland)
  • Competition selection, Bosphorus International Film Festival (Turkey)
  • Official selection, Moscow Premiere International Film Festival (Russia)
  • Competition selection, Palić European Film Festival (Serbia)
  • Competition selection, Bridges – East of the West Film Days (Belgium)

References

  1. ^ "Фильм "Хамелеон" участвует в кинофестивале в Швейцарии" [The film "Chameleon" is participating in a film festival in Switzerland]. Day.az (in Russian). 8 August 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Berlinale Talents - Ru Hasanov". Berlinale Talents. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  3. ^ Wang, Michael (2006-07-27). "Black Market". Artforum. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  4. ^ "Ru Hasanov • Director of The Island Within - "Making this film was a long and intimate process, it reflects my relations to my family and my country"". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  5. ^ a b Vourlias, Christopher (2020-08-20). "Ru Hasanov on Sarajevo Player 'The Island Within' and the Rising Azerbaijani Film Biz". Variety. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  6. ^ Petkovic, Vladan. "Sarajevo Q&A: Ru Hasanov on how a real-life story inspired chess drama 'The Island Within'". Screen. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  7. ^ a b Grater, Tom (2020-08-21). "Sarajevo Film Festival Crowns 2020 Winners". Deadline. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  8. ^ a b Pond, Steve (2021-11-10). "Oscars International Race 2021: Complete List of Entries". TheWrap. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  9. ^ Zakharyev, Andrey. "Пойдем в кино: азербайджанские фильмы в Москве" [Let's go to the cinema: Azerbaijani films in Moscow]. www.baku-media.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  10. ^ a b "Rufat Hasanov • Head of the Audiovisual and Interactive Media Department, Ministry for Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  11. ^ "Spring 2025 CAMCA Fellows Announcement". Rumsfeld Foundation. 21 March 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Creativity of Azerbaijani cinema celebrated in Paris". Azertag. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  13. ^ a b Babintseva, Natalia. "Руфат Гасанов: мимо штампов" [Rufat Hasanov: beyond the stamps]. www.baku-media.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-05-15.
  14. ^ a b "FESTIVAL 2021 - PALMARÈS DE LA 2 ÈME ÉDITION". Nouvelles Images Persanes. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
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