Deepak Rauniyar, the Internationally Acclaimed Director

One of the most well-known filmmakers from Nepal, Deepak Rauniyar achieved international recognition for his work on the films “Highway” and “White Sun”. The New York Times commended him as one among ‘The 9 New Directors You Need to Watch’.

Rauniyar is a Fellow of Berlinale Talents [2012], TIFF Talent Lab [2013], Asian Cultural Council [2013] and Rotterdam Lab [2014]. He worked with the BBC World Service Trust in Nepal, in writing and directing several award-winning radio dramas.

Highway, his debut film as director, premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2012 and became the first Nepali film to be screened at a major international festival. BBC highlighted the landmark event saying that, “It has taken nearly 50 years for a Nepali film to be shown at a major global film festival, for an industry which produces over 80 films a year.” Harvard University included the film in the syllabus of their world cinema course.

Rauniyar’s second film White Sun, set during the time of Nepal’s civil war, was released in 2016 and received rave reviews. It has been screened in over 50 international film festivals.

He is currently working on his next film Raja, a socially rooted police thriller, with development support from the Hubert Bals Fund.