Philippe Aractingi

Philippe Aractingi (فيليب عرقتنجي) (born in Beirut, Lebanon) is a Franco-Lebanese author, director, producer, actor and photographer. Self-taught in his specialty, Philippe Aractingi has directed more than 70 documentaries in various formats and lengths, and 4 feature films, which have been distributed worldwide and awarded more than 40 times at various international festivals, in Venice, Dubai, Thessaloniki, Rotterdam, and at the Sundance Film Festival, among other events in the film industry. Two of his films, Bosta and Under the Bombs, were both Lebanon selection at the Oscars in 2006 and 2009, respectively. Aractingi is the co-founder of the Lebanese Cinema Foundation (FLC) and the vice-chairman of the Beirut Screen Institute Committee. In 2018, Aractingi was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture. Philippe Aractingi was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1964. At the age of 8, his father gave him his first camera. From the age of 16, living on the demarcation line in the midst of the Lebanese war, he captured photographs of the war, that went on to be published in various international news publications. At the time, film was not yet a discipline taught in schools. However, Aractingi was not discouraged by this and decided to teach himself, despite the lack of audiovisual programs availabilities in a war-ridden country. At the age of 20, he filmed his first broadcast documentary, in his hometown, Beirut. Aractingi has a wife, Diane and three children, Matthieu, Luc and Eve. The family has fled Lebanon several times, during periods of conflict. Philippe moved to Paris in 1989, at the age of 25. There, he dedicated the following 12 years of his career to writing, directing, and occasionally producing and co-producing over 50 documentaries and short films for renowned international TV channels such as The Discovery Channel, France Télé, Arte, NDR, Sky. He shot most of his works in various countries such as Egypt, France, Mongolia, Morocco, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Tunisia, among other locations. Amongst his most notable documentaries are Vol Libre au Liban in 1991, that won the Best Short Film Award at the Saint-Hilary Film Festival; Par le Regard des Mères in 1992, that competed in the Vision du réel Film Festival in Nyon; and Beyrouth de Pierre et de Mémoire in 1992, that won the gold medal of Jeux de la Francophonie.