Biografi
Alia Azamat Ashkenazi was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and raised in Moscow, Russia, by her paternal grandmother, Soviet journalist-turned-librarian Rano Abduraimova. In high school, Alia was deeply involved in drama and literature clubs and graduated as an Honors student and Valedictorian.
Alia's father, Azamat Abduraimov, is an international soccer star and a champion of the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, where his goal against South Korea was celebrated as the Best Goal in Uzbek football history, famously known as the "Golden Goal." Her paternal grandfather, Berador, was named the Best Uzbek Goal Scorer of the 20th century and is regarded as the greatest football player in Uzbek history. Born into a family of elite athletes, Alia played junior tennis competitively and is now an outspoken fitness enthusiast.
Alia began her career in 2006 as a sports columnist for Otechestvenny Futbol magazine and as a reporter for the Russian national newspaper Uchitelskaya Gazeta. She built an impressive journalistic career at a young age but eventually realized her true passion and talent lay in dramatic writing and visual storytelling.
She has received two United Nations Awards for her documentary work (Sadako) and for theater writing and direction (Michael Jackson: Peacemaking).
In 2012, Alia created and hosted the radio show "Azamat's Champions" on Radio Terra, which became one of the station's most popular programs. On this show, she aimed to connect professional athletes with listeners, dedicating much of the content to entertaining biographical profiles of star football players such as Zinedine Zidane, Leo Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Steven Gerrard, and Piqué.
By that time, Alia was also a published poet and wrote the lyrics for "The Sun," a pop-rock song performed by the band SAHAR. The song became a chart-topping hit in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan and received frequent airplay on Ukrainian radio stations.
In 2014, Alia moved to New York to pursue a career in film and television. She earned a talent-based scholarship and graduated from NYFA as a screenwriter. Since 2016, she has served as a script supervisor on over 150 narrative and commercial projects, including notable productions like Russian Doll, The Sinner, Love, Victor, and promos for Glass and When They See Us, as well as commercials featuring Hugh Jackman, Tessa Thompson, Dua Lipa, Samuel L. Jackson, a Turkish Airlines Super Bowl spot starring Morgan Freeman, and a Hellmann's Super Bowl spot featuring Pete Davidson.
Her narrative writing credits include the shorts Am I Pretty (2014), Mama (2015), Stay (2021), and Esther's Choice (2020), the latter of which she also directed and produced. Starring Francois Arnaud, Esther's Choice has been praised as "a tender but fraught journey" and "hauntingly beautiful." The romantic thriller won Best U.S. Narrative Film and Best Cinematography (Guillermo Cameo) at Venice Shorts and ranked sixth among the most-viewed films at the Chelsea Film Festival, out of 130 selected projects.
In November 2020, Alia was invited to the Big Apple Film Festival with two films: Esther's Choice and the world premiere of Misha, a feature documentary she co-wrote and co-directed atmospheric scenes for. Both films were official selections at the prestigious Santa Fe Film Festival in 2021. Misha was also an official selection of the Manchester Film Festival and served as the festival’s Opening Night Feature Film, a rare honor for a documentary. After winning Best Documentary Feature at the Oxford International Film Festival, Misha is set for international distribution, while Esther's Choice is now available worldwide on YouTube.
As a writer, Alia is known for her emotional, often ensemble-cast, linear storytelling that incorporates unconventional narrative elements such as imaginary characters and fantasy or dream sequences. She has established a reputation for expertly balancing comedy and drama in her scripts, each showcasing a distinctive voice and tone. Central themes in her work include family, identity, and success, with frequent explorations of trauma, love, and parent-child relationships.
As a director, Alia aims to create visual sensations and cinematic poetry in her films, encouraging viewers to watch repeatedly and discover new details each time. Raised by a librarian and surrounded by books, she has expressed interest in bringing magical realism to the screen and enjoys blending genres and adapting literature.
Alia has played backgammon since childhood, a hobby she continues to pursue. She won the 2015 Capital Classic Backgammon Championship in Washington D.C., the 2016 Ultimate Backgammon Tournament in San Antonio, Texas, and the 2019 Boston Backgammon Championship. She has also been a multiple-time finalist in distinguished U.S. backgammon tournaments, including the Las Vegas Open and New York Metropolitan Open.
