Several Aspects of Creative Work of Film Director Zaza Khalvashi

Abstract

The present paper is devoted to a comprehensive study of several important aspects of the creative work of Georgian film director Zaza Khalvashi, a representative of the generation of Georgian filmmakers of the 1980s. The aim of the research is to analyze the director’s artistic and aesthetic principles, creative methods, social and existential concerns and cinematic worldview. The study is based on qualitative and interdisciplinary research methods and examines the director’s feature films, his autobiographical book Film Diaries, film critics’ assessments, television programs and interviews.

The paper analyzes the evolution of Zaza Khalvashi’s creative work from social protest and a critical understanding of reality to a poetic, metaphorical and cosmological vision. Particular attention is paid to the director’s characteristic black-and-white film aesthetic, improvisational method, work with incomplete or flexible scripts and use of non-professional actors. The study also highlights the themes of social alienation, human spiritual condition, connection with nature, faith, love and solidarity in the films There with Me, Miserere, Solomon, Namme and Lotto.

The paper also focuses on recurring archetypal motifs in the director’s films and on the everyday, social and spiritual crises experienced by his characters. There with Me presents the disintegration of family and social environment, while Miserere intensifies the sense of public indifference and chaos. Solomon depicts the conflict between an unrealized artist and reality. In Namme, central importance is given to the harmonious unity of human beings, nature and faith. Lotto emphasizes nostalgia, the transience of human relationships and the importance of solidarity. Thus, the director’s cinematic language combines realistic observation, experimental form, metaphorical thinking and philosophical generalization, giving his cinema a distinctive identity and intellectual coherence.