Official Section

The Other Bank

Gagma Napiri

GEORGIA / KAZAKHSTAN 2009. 35 mm. Color. 90’

12-year-old Tedo and his young mother, Keto, live very modestly as refugees near Tbilissi. They have been displaced from Abkhazia because of the civil war that has done away everything they had, including their hope for future happiness as part of an intact family. Tedo was only four when they left Abkhazia, leaving behind his father, who had a heart condition that made it impossible for him to embark on the rough journey.
Although several years have passed, Tedo has difficulty adapting to his new environment and he feels guilty for not contributing to the household economy. Tired of how his mother lives, and having made a discovery that is deeply disturbing, he decides to return to his homeland. However, when he makes it home he discovers that the circumstances there are no better than the ones he has left behind.


  • Director: George Ovashvili
  • Producer: Sain Gabdullin, George Ovashvili
  • Screenwriter: Nugzar Shataidze
  • Director of Photography: Shahriar Assadi
  • Artistic Director: Merab Joxadze
  • Editor: Sun-Min Kim
  • Sound: Vladimir Golovnitski, Nezamedin Kiaie
  • Music: Josef Bardanashvili
  • Cast: Tedo Bekhauri (Tedo), Galoba Gambaria (Tsupak), Nika Alajajev (Goshka), Tamara Meskhi (Mariam), Jano Izoria (Jangul), Lia Abuladze (Zita)
  • Language and Subtitles: Georgian, Abkhazian, Russian

George Ovashvili

George Ovashvili was born in Mzcheta, Georgia, in 1963. In 1996 he graduated from the Film and Theatre Institute of Georgia, and then from the New York Film Academy - Universal Studios in 2006. Stage actor and director of children’s theatre, Ovashvili has also worked as publicity director.
He has made numerous shorts, including Eye Level, for which he won a prize in the Panorama section of the 2005 Berlinale. The Other Bank is his first feature-length film.

Filmography

The Very Short Story (cortometraje_short), 1993; The Trolley (cortometraje_short), 1996; The Mirage (cortometraje_short), 2000; Eye Level (cortometraje_short), 2004; Connection (cortometraje_short), 2005; Gagma Napiri (The Other Bank), 2009