Koutaiba Al-Janabi, film maker and photographer, was born in iraq and currently lives in the UK. He has been awarded for
his films, and his photos have been published in reputed British photography magazines. In late seventies, Koutaiba sought refuge
in Hungary and later moved to London. Due to changes of world politics he is closely attached to his birthplace, Baghdad,
to his current place of residence, London, and to Budapest as well. His work carries the mark of the outsider, the exile,
the displaced, both in its mood and its subject. Strong compositions, an intimacy between camera and subject and the use
of natural light are the hallmark of his powerful images.
Koutaiba’s photography has been exhibited widely, from a travelling exhibition in Hungary, the Hungarian Photography Museum,
Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt, to the Islington Museum, Kodak Gallery amongst others in London. He considers himself as
a photographer and film maker. His short films have won several awards around the world including the Train, Transient, No Man’s Land,
Wasteland and the Ever Restless Man. Koutaiba has also worked on several feature films as Cinematographer, Jiyan, the first Iraqi
Kurdistan feature film, Emotional Backgammon, John of Diamonds amongst others. He is currently working on his own debut feature film,
set in Hungary, with the support of the Hungarian Motion Picture Fund.
Koutaiba lives in Islington, north London with his wife, Hanna, and their two children, Daoud and Aisha.
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