Samir Mehanović  was born in Tuzla, Bosnia, the youngest of five brothers. He is a film and theatre director, producer, and screenwriter. Samir Mehanovic started his career and worked with actors in JLS Avant-garde Theatre, which he established in 1992 during the war in Bosnia. Based in Scotland since 1995 he continued his theatre work before successfully transferred his communication skills, knowledge and experience to filmmaking. He received the BAFTA Scotland Best First Time Director award for the short film The Way We Played.