Igi is a young, strong hunter in the prehistoric, primitive tribe who are still bent-over. He is the first one to straighten up and see the world from a different angle. The young Chief Kaas does not approve of straightening up. But bending back brings enormous pain to Igi, and he has to descend from the best hunter in the tribe to a near-death, outcast and lonely position, to face the fact he must be what he really is, and straighten up for good. New possibilities, new ways of thinking and acting come to him; love, expressive words and artistic abilities open up one after another, raising him even higher than before, to the “real tribe leader” whom everyone loves. Chief Kaas, afraid of losing the power, sentences him to death, which makes the idea of the Straightened Man even stronger.

"This story may seem distant and old, but for me it is much more relevant nowadays than any modern story. The deeper I go into this subject, the more I am assured that nothing has really changed; we still worry about food, clothes and a house to live in, if we are rich just eating better food, buying much more clothes and living in a bigger house. As humans we haven’t really evolved, our needs seem really the same, and still when there is someone who stands up, discovers the world from a different angle, opening a different way of being human, it seems just as easy to throw him in the dust or kill him," Natia Nikolashvili told FNE.

"Igi is an adaptation of Jemal Karchkhadze's acclaimed novel under the same title. The director and I appreciated the idea that although the story unfolds in prehistoric times it does not lose its relevance today. Moreover, the visual style that Natia requires to use will merely serve the story. The film will be performed in the style of 2D classic animation. The project is in the development stage, but I would say we are entering the conclusion of that phase. Next year we will actively start raising funds. The project budget is still unknown. Development costs are borne entirely by our company, as there are no funds to finance the development and production of a full-length animated feature film in Georgia," Vladimer Katcharava told FNE.

Natia Nikolashvili was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 1989. She graduated with a degree in animation direction from the Shota Rustaveli Theatre and Film Georgia State University in 2010. She currently works as a creative director, layout artist and animator for the production company 20 Steps Productions. In 2017 her debut short film Li.le premiered in the Berlinale-Generation section.

Production Information:

20 Steps Productions
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Credits:
Writer / Director - Natia Nikolashvili
Adaptation of Jemal Karchkhadze's novel "Igi" (1977)
Production Company - 20 Steps Productions
Producer - Vladimer Katcharava
Start of Production – 2022
Video Presentation - https://vimeo.com/459415782
Test - https://vimeo.com/451437729/23d1f3c8c2