Neven Hitrec graduated in film and TV directing from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb. He made his debut in 1999 with the film Madonna, for which he was awarded with the Grand Prix at the Pula Film Festival and the Breza award for best newcomer. He is a two-time winner of the Golden Lamp award at Days of Croatian Film: in 1993 for the documentaries Hall and 730 Days Later, and in 2002 for Silent Voices. In 2001, he won the Special Jury Prize in San Francisco for the film Let There Be Water. His second feature-length film Sleep Sweet, My Darling won the Gate of Pula audience award, as well as five Golden Arenas at the Pula Film Festival in 2005.