14/03/2024 - The Georgian producer explains how documentaries can be the most powerful tool to combat censorship

An interview with Mariam Chachia, producer for Georgian company OpyoDoc, now selected for the 2024 Emerging Producers programme. Read her EP profile here.

Why do you produce documentaries? Do you see documentary cinema as an instrument of social and political change?
Mariam Chachia: Why do I make documentaries? That's a question I often ask myself. Though I can't point to one specific reason, I'm drawn to documentaries because they bring unexpected surprises and revelations. It's like discovering something extraordinary in a story—a moment where reality is more amazing than anything you could imagine. Making documentaries is just something I can't resist doing.

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To be more grounded, I have a few rational answers about the responsibility I've undertaken in the field of documentaries. It's the most exciting field where you can't control the miracle, but you are honoured to capture it and share it with the world. Documentary films represent the best form of art, preserving history and providing a stage for ordinary people. In a world where the past can be conveniently rewritten, and subjective narratives often overshadow the truth, documentaries emerge as a powerful medium. They might become the guides of authenticity, connecting generations and passing down invaluable lessons from the past to shape the future.

How do you achieve and maintain work-life balance and foster overall well-being?
Achieving a work life balance and overall well being is a lifelong challenge for the best of us and I am no different. In our family there are two filmmakers, my husband and I. Mostly we divide our time between collaborating professionally and caring for our family of three daughters, so attaining a work life balance is a process that we are both working on daily. Achieving overall wellbeing is a very personal endeavor, I find myself in my work, I am happiest when I am working. Last year I was diagnosed with breast cancer and, while my life became very uncertain, I was able to find my solace in the work I do. My work brings me joy and I am lucky enough to have a family who is able to accept this. Whether this brings me overall wellbeing is a question I may only be able to answer in years to come but for now, I am grateful for the life I have and that I can plan ahead.

Where do you find audiences for your films?
The audience for my films is divided into two categories: international, which I reach through international festivals, and local. The local audience is a little more challenging to reach, but so far, OpyoDoc has managed to travel through Georgian regions and organize screenings, along with discussions with the audience after each film.

Local screenings are crucial for us because OpyoDoc's films always address social issues related to current subjects that are important to discuss locally. The most challenging project is my latest film, Magic Mountain [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mariam Chachia, Nik Voigt
film profile], which I directed and produced. The film tells the story of the last tuberculosis sanatorium in Georgia, built by Russian Tsar Romanov and destroyed by a Georgian oligarch who is a ruler of the main political party in Georgia.

The film received criticism and threats from the Minister of Culture of Georgia, making it very complicated to screen in movie theaters in Georgia. Unfortunately, Georgian broadcasters are not interested in screening Georgian documentaries on TVs abroad.

What projects do you have underway?
I am currently working on three new documentaries: Nana’s Wings by Maradia Tsaava is an artistic documentary constructed from archival materials about the director’s grandmother. Nana’s Wings tells the story of a forgotten Georgian female theater director who brought hope and light to a small provincial town in post-war Georgia, where poverty and hunger were widespread.

Adam’s Tooth by Nik Voigt follows a Georgian archaeologist's fight for his dream to prove to the world that his discovery of a 1.8-million-year-old tooth can change the history of human evolution. Despite international interest from leading archaeologists in the human tooth, it was confiscated and “arrested” by the Minister of Culture of Georgia.

The third documentary film project, Wave, which I am both producing and directing, follows the Georgian filmmakers' movement advocating for the freedom of the Georgian Film Center. They staunchly oppose the repressive policies of the Ministry of Culture. Over 8 months, they have been fighting against censorship. If the rulers of the country consider it dangerous to finance independent films, creating a film about it is the most effective way to combat censorship.

The last project is my film Magic Mountain, currently traveling around. As I don’t have a sales agent on board, I consider it my responsibility to find interested broadcasters to screen the film widely.

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EMERGING PRODUCERS is a leading promotional and educational project, which brings together talented European documentary film producers. The programme is organised and curated by the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival.

Deadline for applications to the EMERGING PRODUCERS 2025 edition is 31st March 2024.