Marie Surae

Moscow, USSR (Russia)

Maria Constantinovna Ivanova (-Surae/-Zeyd) is a director, screenwriter and producer with over 16 years of experience in the film industry, including years of commitment to the Lebanese cultural scene. She was born in Moscow in 1983.

She graduated from the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University. She is the CEO of the Scoop Production film company. She started as a documentary filmmaker and switched to feature films. As a producer she filmed more than 100 documentaries for TV channels. In 2014 the short fiction film "The Last One" or "Sonuncu" (a co-production between Russia and Azerbaijan) produced by Maria was selected for the Official Competition of Short Films at the 67th Cannes Film Festival, it later participated in 87 film festivals and received 9 awards. In 2017 Maria directed the documentary short "Muhamad" and documentary feature about Syrian refugees "Fleeing the War". The film received a special award from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Russia and the main Critics' Choice Award at the Stalker International Film Festival. In 2020 Maria shot a documentary film about a village for people with autism called "Village". In 2021 Maria finished her debut feature "The Anger" (a co-production between Lebanon and Germany). The star of French cinema, actress Manal Issa plays the lead role. The cinematographer is Tommaso Fiorilli. In the spring of 2021 Maria has started working on her next feature film under the title "I'm not Lakit" which will be shot in Lebanon. The cinematographer is Marius Panduru. In addition to cinema, Maria is involved in social projects. She is the head of the Russian Association of the CDKL5 mutation. She organized an exhibition of an artist with autism, she is involved in projects helping children with disabilities.