Mikhail Kalatozov

Mikhail Konstantinovich Kalatozov 28 December 1903 27 March 1973 born Mikheil Kalatozishvili was a Soviet film director of Georgian origin who contributed to both Georgian and Russian cinema He is most well known for his films The Cranes Are Flying and Soy Cuba In 1969 he received the Peoples Artist of the USSR accolade His film The Cranes Are Flying won the Palme dOr at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival Kalatozov studied economics and changed many professions before starting his film career as an actor and later as a cinematographer He directed several documentary films including Their Kingdom with Nutsa Gogoberidze the first Georgian female film director2 and Salt for Svanetia 1930 In 1933 he enrolled to the Russian State Institute of Performing Arts In 1936 he headed the Kartuli Pilmi film studio then he was suggested a place at the USSR State Committee for Cinematography In 1939 he moved to Leningrad to work at the Lenfilm studio as a film director During World War II he directed several propaganda films and worked as a cultural attaché at the Soviet embassy in the United States