# Kitty Green

Kitty Green (born 1984) is an Australian film director, editor, producer, and screenwriter. The majority of her projects have been documentaries, while two have been narrative-driven stories. Green produced, directed, wrote, and edited the 2019 film The Assistant. Her work often portrays heavy topics such as unsolved murders and politics.

## Early life and education

Kitty Green grew up in Melbourne. She attended the Victorian College of the Arts, where she studied film and television. While attending the Victorian College of the Arts, Green made a short film entitled Spilt that was premiered at the Brisbane International Film Festival and screened at festivals internationally, earning a few awards in the process. Soon after her graduation, Green began work at ABC on 'Art Nation' and 'Artscape'. Green also traveled around Europe and described herself as "crashing on couches" during the beginning of her career. She later went to work on a film entitled Van Diemen's Land in 2009, but only in the camera and electrical department, specifically in charge of stills. A few years later she went on to work on her first documentary Ukraine is Not a Brothel, spending a year in her grandmother's native home, Ukraine. During the filming she was arrested by the SBU and faced what she described as "a ferocious media circus" when the film released. She and two other protesters were forcefully taken and abducted by officers, and were held in a SBU office for lengthy interrogations. Green's friends and family were highly concerned about her disappearance, and say she is extremely lucky to have come out of the situation safely.
Her film Ukraine Is Not A Brothel focuses on the Ukrainian feminist movement "Femen". The film won an AACTA award for Best Australian Feature Documentary. She also won an award for her short film The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul for Best Non-Fiction Short Film at the Sundance Film Festival.
Later on in 2017 Green moved to the United States to work on her documentary Casting JonBenét and currently resides there.

## Career

Soon after graduating from the Victorian College of the Arts, Green went on to work at ABC on 'Art Nation' and 'Artscape' where she shot, edited, and produced documentary content for national broadcast. Later on she worked on Van Diemen's Land (2009) in the camera and electrical department.
Green directed the following documentaries:
* Casting JonBenét (2017),
* Ukraine Is Not a Brothel (2013),
* The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul (2015).
She also helped on the documentary Austin to Boston as an editor in 2014.
Green also directed The Assistant, a film about an assistant in the film industry who is faced with a moral dilemma in relation to the #MeToo movement.
Her feature film The Royal Hotel was released in 2023, to positive reviews.

## Filmography

While it is unclear when Green released it, she did make a student film entitled Spilt.
| Year | Film | Director | Producer | Writer | Editor |
| 2013 | Ukraine is not a Brothel | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2014 | Austin to Boston | No | No | No | Yes |
| 2015 | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2017 | Casting JonBenet | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2019 | The Assistant | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2023 | The Royal Hotel | Yes | No | Yes | No |

## Awards and nominations

Green did receive a few awards for her student film Spilt but an official list of nominations and awards are not currently available for this film.
Green won an AACTA award for Best Australian Feature Documentary for the documentary film Ukraine Is Not A Brothel.
Green also won Best Non-Fiction Short Film at the Sundance Film Festival in 2015 for the short film The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul.
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards :
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated Work | Result |
| 2015 | AACTA Award | Best Feature Length Documentary | Ukraine Is Not a Brothel | Won |
| 2015 | AACTA Award | Best Direction in a Documentary | Ukraine Is Not a Brothel | Nominated |
| 2015 | AACTA Award | Best Editing in a Documentary | Ukraine Is Not a Brothel | Nominated |
| 2017 | AACTA Award | Best Feature Length Documentary | Casting JonBenet | Won |
| 2017 | AACTA Award | Best Direction in a Documentary | Casting JonBenet | Nominated |
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US :
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated Work | Result |
| 2016 | Cinema Eye Honors Award | Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Short Filmmaking | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Nominated |
| 2018 | Cinema Eye Honors Award | Outstanding Achievement in Direction | Casting JonBenet | Nominated |
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2013 | Venice Film Festival | Special Mention | Ukraine is Not a Brothel | Won |
| 2013 | London Film Festival | Grierson Award | Ukraine is Not a Brothel | Nominated |
| 2014 | SXSW Film Festival | Audience Award | Ukraine is Not a Brothel | Nominated |
| 2014 | Bushwick Film Festival | Best Documentary Feature | Ukraine is Not a Brothel | Won |
| 2015 | AFI Fest | Grand Jury Prize | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Nominated |
| 2015 | Berlin International Film Festival | Crystal Bear | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Nominated |
| 2015 | Sundance Film Festival | Short Film Grand Jury Prize | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Nominated |
| 2015 | Sundance Film Festival | Short Film Jury Prize | The Face of Ukraine: Casting Oksana Baiul | Won |
| 2017 | Sundance Film Festival | Grand Jury Prize | Casting JonBenet | Nominated |
| 2021 | Independent Spirit Awards | Best First Screenplay | The Assistant | Nominated |