Sachithanandam Sathananthan  

Born in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, Sachithanandam Sathananthan holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge and has produced and directed a number of acclaimed films spanning across both fictional and documentary genres. Sathananthan’s interests often reside in the subject of national and social movements, particularly concerning issues of gender and religion in Pakistan, as well as his native Sri Lanka. His producing credits include WHERE PEACOCKS DANCE (1992), SUICIDE WARRIORS (1996), and KHAMOSH PANI: SILENT WATERS (2003) a feature film about the growth of Islamic extremism in Pakistan, which won the Grand Leopard prize at the 56th Locarno International Film Festival. All three films were produced by the Pakistan-based company Vidhi Films, which Sathananthan co-founded.

Vidhi Films also produced the widely acclaimed DINNER WITH THE PRESIDENT: A NATION’S JOURNEY (2007), of which Sathananthan co-directed with frequent collaborator Sabiha Sumar. The film centers around intimate dinner conversations with the former President Pervez Musharraf, who seized complete control of Pakistan in 1999 via a military coup. The film was nominated for the Grand Jury prize at Sundance in 2008, premiering in the festival’s World Cinema Documentary section. (3/19)