Elsa Amiel
Field of Work
Director, Cinematographer
Country
France
Biography
Elsa Amiel grew up in theaters, traveling the world from an early age alongside her father, the mime Amiel. After training in the performing arts (theater, mime, and dance), she chose cinema at the age of 18 and made her directing debut alongside Raoul Ruiz on Comedy of Innocence. She then worked as a first assistant director for M. Amalric (The Wimbledon Stage, On Tour), E.Finkiel (Nowhere Promised Land, A Decent Man, Mariana's Room), B.Bonello (House of Tolerance, Saint Laurent), N. Lvovsky (Camille Rewinds, Tomorrow and I, The Great Magic), Riad Sattouf (The French Kissers),... In 2007, she directed her first short film, Faccia d’Angelo, which won awards at several festivals, followed by Ailleurs seulement in 2012. Her debut feature film, Pearl, co-produced by Bande à Part and Unité de Production, starring bodybuilder Julia Föry alongside actors Arieh Worthalter and Peter Mullan, was selected for several festivals, including Venice's Giornate degli Autori and the Tribeca Film Festival in New York. Pearl has since been sold in numerous countries. In 2022, she directed a short film as part of the H24 series- titled Fan Zone, titled FanZone- against violence against women, broadcast on Arte. In 2024, Elsa Amiel directed the play Fay, performed in Paris and the Île-de-France region. In 2026, she completed her feature documentary Dentro, shot inside Volterra Prison. Dentro began his career on the festival circuit, in the official competition at Visions du Réel in Nyon.
Contacts / Info
Director’s statement / Sample of Work / Showcase
Filmography
Dentro, 2026
L’Orage a passé la mer, 2024
22h – Fan Zone, 2021
Untertitel (Kein Bild), 2019
Pearl, 2018
Ailleurs seulement, 2010
Faccia d'Angelo, 2007
Awards&Recognitions
Interreligious Award, Visions du Réel, Nyon, 2026
