Alim Kaisynovich Kouliev (born June 24, 1959) is a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

, and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

of Balkar origin. Kouliev was born in

Nalchik Nalchik (russian: Нальчик, p=ˈnalʲtɕɪk; Kabardian: //; krc, Нальчик //) is the capital city of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Russia, situated at an altitude of in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains; about northwe ...

— a small city in

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

. His father was the Balkar poet Kaisyn Kuliev and his mother was his Ingush wife Maka. His older brother Eldar Kuliev was a

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and a

. His younger brother

Azamat Kuliev Azamat Kaisynovich Kuliev (born March 1, 1963) is a Russian artist of Balkar origin. Kuliev was born in Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, to the Balkar poet Kaisyn Kuliev and his Ingush wife Maka. His elder brother, Alim Kouliev, i ...

is a Russian

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

, living and working in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. At the age of seven, Kouliev was influenced by

Vladimir Visotsky Vladimir Semyonovich Vysotsky ( rus, links=no, Владимир Семёнович Высоцкий, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr sʲɪˈmʲɵnəvʲɪtɕ vɨˈsotskʲɪj; 25 January 1938 – 25 July 1980), was a Soviet singer-songwriter, poet, and actor ...

, an acclaimed Russian actor, poet, and singer, and one of his father's younger colleagues in the poetry field. Alim later decided to become an actor.

Biography

He studied acting at the

Russian Academy of Theatre Arts The Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS) (russian: Российский институт театрального искусства – ГИТИС) is the largest and oldest independent drama school, theatrical arts school in Russia. Locat ...

(GITIS) in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. After serving in the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

, he was studying stage directing in GITIS, and continued his education at the

All-Union State Institute of Cinematography The Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (russian: Всероссийский государственный институт кинематографии имени С. А. Герасимова, meaning ''All-Russian State Institute of Cinemat ...

(VGIK) in

, where he graduated from the acting class of

Yevgeny Matveyev Yevgeny Semyonovich Matveyev (russian: Евгений Семёнович Матвеев, uk, Євген Семенович Матвеев; 8 March 1922 – 1 June 2003) was a Soviet and Russian actor and film director who was named a People's ...

, an acclaimed master of theater and cinema. His classmate was

Natalya Vavilova Natalya Dmitrievna Vavilova (russian: Наталья Дмитриевна Вавилова, born 26 January 1959) is a Russian film actress. Biography Vavilova started her career as an actress at the age of fourteen. She appeared in several pic ...

. Ever since he was a student, Kouliev appeared on the professional stage. His first significant role on stage was

Mercutio Mercutio ( , ) is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's 1597 tragedy, ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is a close friend to Romeo and a blood relative to Prince Escalus and Count Paris. As such, Mercutio is one of the named characters in the p ...

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'' at

Aleksandr Demidov Aleksandr Demidov (russian: link=no, Алекса́ндр Серге́евич Деми́дов) is a Russian actor, screenwriter, camera operator and film producer. Merited Artist of the Russian Federation. Selected filmography References ...

Theater-Studio, where he also played Atavio in ''

The Moods of Marianne ''The Moods of Marianne'' (french: Les Caprices de Marianne) is an 1833 play by the French dramatist Alfred de Musset. It served as the basis for Jean Renoir's film ''The Rules of the Game'' (1939). The play was first published on 15 May 1833 ...

'' by

Alfred de Musset Alfred Louis Charles de Musset-Pathay (; 11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist.His names are often reversed "Louis Charles Alfred de Musset": see "(Louis Charles) Alfred de Musset" (bio), Biography.com, 2007 ...

and Meleander in

Maurice Maeterlinck Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck (29 August 1862 – 6 May 1949), also known as Count (or Comte) Maeterlinck from 1932, was a Belgian playwright, poet, and essayist who was Flemish but wrote in French. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in ...

's ''Aglavain and Selyzett''. He broke into films starring as Joseph Codrero in ''

Copper Angel ''Copper Angel'' (russian: Медный ангел, Medny angel) is a 1984 Soviet action film directed by Veniamyn Dorman and starring Anatoly Kuznetsov, Leonid Kuravlyov and Aleksandr Filippenko. Plot The international geological expedition head ...

'' with

Leonid Kuravlyov Leonid Vyacheslavovich Kuravlyov (russian: Леонид Вячеславович Куравлёв; 8 October 1936 – 30 January 2022) was a Soviet and Russian film actor. He became a People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1976. Early life Kuravlyov w ...

Anatoly Kuznetsov Anatoly Vasilievich Kuznetsov (russian: Анато́лий Васи́льевич Кузнецо́в; August 18, 1929, Kiev, USSR – June 13, 1979, London) was a Russian-language Soviet writer who described his experiences in German-occupied K ...

Aleksandr Filippenko Aleksandr Georgievich Filippenko (russian: links=no, Александр Георгиевич Филиппенко; born September 2, 1944) is a Soviet and Russian actor. People's Artist of Russia (2000). Biography He was born in Moscow. His pare ...

Leonid Yarmolnik Leonid Isaakovich Yarmolnik (russian: Леони́д Исаа́кович Ярмо́льник; born January 22, 1954) is a Soviet and Russian actor and film producer. Biography Was born on January 22, 1954, in Grodekovo, Primorsky Krai, where ...

. He has twelve years of acting experience working in leading Moscow theaters and has had several roles in the famous Russian feature films. Kouliev created many great characters in classic and contemporary productions, under the best Russian theatrical directors. In 1991, his life changed dramatically; he moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. After a long break in his career as an actor, Kouliev made his comeback. In

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, he became a key member of the theatrical troupe ''Dreamhouse Ensemble'', where he played Sasha Smirnoff in ''

Room Service Room service or in-room dining is a hotel service enabling guests to choose items of food and drink for delivery to their hotel room for consumption. Room service is organized as a subdivision within the food and beverage department of high-end ...

'' and Uncle Tobit in ''Jimmy Christ''. In 2009, the producer-actor-director presented his "master project", his own stage adaptation of

Mikhail Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐfɐˈnasʲjɪvʲɪtɕ bʊlˈɡakəf; – 10 March 1940) was a Soviet writer, medical doctor, and playwright active in the fir ...

’s novel ''

The Master and Margarita ''The Master and Margarita'' (russian: Мастер и Маргарита) is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐf ...

''. Alim Kouliev performs extensively as an actor in the Hollywood film industry, on stage, and on TV.

Filmography

Stage

Acting

Directing

References

External links

*
Alim Kouliev. The Master and Margarita ProjectAlim Kouliev. Interview.YouTube. Oleander. Episode 2
* Alim Kouliev
United States Copyrights Office. Kouliev Alim. ''Mansur''. PAu003862115 / 2017-05-12

* ttp://www.kinobusiness.com/news/kinoaktery-iz-rossii-sygrayut-v-gollivudskom-teatre/index.php Киноактеры из России сыграют в голливудском театре br>Backstage. ROOM SERVICE
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kouliev, Alim 1959 births Living people People from Nalchik Soviet male film actors Russian male film actors Russian male stage actors American male film actors American male stage actors American theatre directors Russian Academy of Theatre Arts alumni American male television actors Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography alumni Soviet emigrants to the United States