The recently completed 75 min. documentary film, “National Exams”, filmed in Eastern Europe, is directed by Giorgi Mrevlishvili and produced by CIES member Nutsa Kobakhidze, inspired on her 2018 book. It follows a rural Georgian teacher’s journey with her soon to graduate students, blending existential reflections, realism, and humor.
The screening will be followed by a discussion with Nutsa Kobakhidze, Iveta Silova and Will Brehm.
Tuesday March 25th, 4:15pm to 6:15pm. At Palmer House, in Clark 5.
This recently completed singular documentary film, “National Exams”, is directed by Giorgi Mrevlishvili and produced by CIES member Nutsa Kobakhidze, inspired on her 2018 book. It was also produced by George Chanturia.
It follows Nana Mgalobishvili, an experienced rural Georgian teacher who has overcome political repression, and her journey with her soon to graduate students, as she prepares them for their National Exam through discussions to promote critical thinking, inclusiveness and peace. It blends existential reflections, realism, and humor.
Meet the Panelists
Nutsa Kobakhidze
Producer
She is currently an Assistant Professor in Comparative and International Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and the Vice President of the Comparative Education Society of Hong Kong (CESHK). She is also former Director of Comparative Education Research Centre (CERC) at HKU. Nutsa is Series Editor for CERC Studies in Comparative Education co-published by CERC and Routledge, and an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Comparative Education and Development (IJCED). Her primary academic interest is in private tutoring or shadow education, having published widely in this area.
Iveta Silova
Iveta Silova is professor and associate dean of global engagement at Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at Arizona State University. Her research focuses on globalization and postsocialist education transformations, including intersections between post-colonialism and post-socialism after the Cold War.Iveta’s most recent research engages with the decoloniality of knowledge production and being, childhood memories, ecofeminism, and environmental sustainability.
Will Brehm
Will Brehm is an Associate Professor in Comparative and International Education at the University of Canberra. Will’s research interrogates how comparative and international education intersects with international relations and the political economy of development, focused primarily on the Mekong sub-region of Southeast Asia. He created the podcast FreshEdin 2015. Episodes have been downloaded over 1 million times by listeners in some 180 countries.
Director and Producers
Nutsa Kobakhidze
Producer
She is currently an Assistant Professor in Comparative and International Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and the Vice President of the Comparative Education Society of Hong Kong (CESHK). She is also former Director of Comparative Education Research Centre (CERC) at HKU. Nutsa is Series Editor for CERC Studies in Comparative Education co-published by CERC and Routledge, and an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Comparative Education and Development (IJCED). Her primary academic interest is in private tutoring or shadow education, having published widely in this area.
George Chanturia
Producer
Chanturia has broad experience in education policy, research, and management. He currently leads the Education Policy Center, one of the foremost civil society organizations in Georgia. He has taught Civic Education at both public and private schools for several years, and has worked as an independent consultant for various local and international organizations. He is the author of The History of General Education in Georgia (2020). Currently, George is pursuing a PhD at East European University, examining the role of humor in teaching.
Giorgi Mrevlishvili
Director
Mrevlishvili holds an MFA in Film from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In 2010, his project Reflection was a finalist for the Berlin Today Award at the Berlinale Film Festival. The film was later selected for Vision du Réel’s Focus: Georgia program in 2015 and featured in a festival dedicated to Georgian cinema at Tokyo’s Iwanami Hall in 2018. His film Zurabi, made with Ateliers Varan, was named Best Georgian Documentary of 2007 at the Niamori Film Festival. His work Twelve Lessons received a Special Mention at the Tbilisi International Film Festival in 2019. Mrevlishvili’s book The Process, a collection of reflective essays on experimental approaches in documentary filmmaking, was published in 2021 by Intelekti Publishing.
Cinematic Spaces of Education Festivalette
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