Born in Moscow in 1937, critically-acclaimed director Andrei Konchalovsky first studied music, becoming a skilled pianist, before studying cinema at the VGIK, the major state film school. He directed his debut feature film The First Teacher in 1965, and soon became a frequent collaborator of Andrei Tarkovsky. Konchalovsky film The Story of Asya Klyachina (1966) was blocked from release until 1988 because of government censorship but later received the Russian academy award for Best Picture and a FIPRESCI prize in Berlin. Amongst many works and several international awards such as the Jury’s Grand Prix at Cannes for Siberiade (1979) and the Grand Special Jury Prize at Venice for House of Fools (2002), Konchalovsky also directed Hollywood projects such as Tango & Cash (1989) with Kurt Russell and Sylvester Stallone. He was awarded the Silver Lion in Venice for both his films The Postman's White Nights (2014) and Paradise (2016).