Lior Geller
Also recorded as Leon Geller
Lior Geller
- Born
- 1982
In this article
Key facts
• Name — Lior Geller • Education — Tel Aviv University • Occupation — Film Producer, Screenwriter, Director and Cinematographer • Known for — Writer, Director and Producer of The World Will Tremble, Writer, Director and Producer of Roads, a student short film that has set a Guinness World Record Lior Geller is an Emmy Award nominated Israeli-American film director, screenwriter, producer, editor, cinematographer, composer, and Guinness World Record holder, best known for writing, directing and producing the feature film The World Will Tremble which tells the true story of the first escape from the first Nazi death camp during World War II.
Early life and education
Lior Geller grew up in Highland Park, New Jersey and Ramat Gan, Israel. He studied film at the Steve Tisch School of Film and Television at Tel Aviv University.
Career
Geller started his film career editing movie trailers and writing, directing and producing several short films, including the multiple award winning short film "Roads" which was nominated for a Student Academy Award and currently sets the Guinness World Record for Most Awards Won by a Short Student Film. In 2008, Geller wrote and directed an Emmy nominated documentary which premiered at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival, won multiple awards, was sold to PBS in the United States where it played on its Wide Angle series in 2009, earning Geller an Emmy nomination. Following the success of "Roads", Geller was brought to Hollywood where he sold his first feature screenplay "Alone in Damascus" to Eric Eisner’s Double E Pictures. After the sale of "Alone in Damascus", Geller went on to sell multiple screenplays as a screenwriter and direct several unscripted television series. Geller's feature film debut, We Die Young, premiered at the 2019 Mammoth Film Festival on February 7, 2019, in Mammoth Lakes, CA as the festival’s opening night gala film. Prior to the screening, the film was preemptively purchased by Lionsgate Films for distribution in the United States. Lionsgate released the film on March 1, 2019 to critical acclaim with particular praise for Geller’s direction and the performance of lead actor Jean-Claude Van Damme. His second film, The World Will Tremble, had its world premiere at the Miami Jewish Film Festival in Miami, Florida, on 16 January 2025 and was released in US theaters March 14, 2025 by Vertical. The film holds a 93% rating on review aggregator website site Rotten Tomatoes, has been called "Astonishing... the first great film of 2025" by film critic Keith Arlington, and has become an international streaming sensation reaching the global Netflix top ten and securing the number one spot in multiple countries.
Filmography
Lior Geller has a catalogue of films and documentaries he produced, wrote and directed. The table below chronicles his filmography. • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 2005 — At the Green Line — Cinematographer — Documentary • 2007 — Roads — Director, Producer and Writer — Short • 2008 — The Heart of Jenin — Director, Writer — Documentary (as Leon Geller) • 2009 — Wide Angle — Director, Writer — TV series documentary (1 episode) • 2010 — Target: Happiness — Director — TV series (6 episodes) • 2016 — Hatched — Director — TV series (6 episodes) • 2017 — H1Z1: Fight for the Crown — Director, Editor, Musician (guitar) — TV mini-series • 2019 — We Die Young — Director, Writer, Editor — Feature Film • 2025 — The World Will Tremble — Director, Producer, Writer, Editor — Feature Film
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Lior Geller, revision 1372347168 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Awards and nominations
Since 2007 Geller has received numerous awards and nominations setting a Guinness World Record for Most Awards Won by a Short Student Film for "Roads". • Year — Festival — Award — Title — Result • 2007 — Aubagne International Film Festival — Special Mention — Roads • Beijing College Student Film Festival — Jury Award • Euromed Cafe FondazioneMediterraneo — Inspiration Award • Jerusalem Film Festival — Wolgin Award for Best Short Film • Montpellier Mediterranean Film Festival — Youth Audience Award • Short Film Grand Prize • 2008 — Festival Inventa Un Film, Italy — Third Prize • Best Editing • Best Soundtrack • CILECT International Association of Film Schools — Best Film • Cinerail Film Festival, Paris — Georges Ragot Prize • Circuito Off Venice International Short Film Festival — RTP2 Award • Special Mention • Israel Film Festival — Audience Award • Encounters International Film Festival — International Jury Award • Expresion en Corto International Film Festival — Best Fiction Short Film • FIKE - Évora International Short Film Festival — Best Film • International Festival of Film Schools, Mexico — Best Film • Kraków Film Festival — Best European Short Film • Larissa Mediterranean Festival of New Filmmakers — Special Jury Mention • London Film Festival — Prix UIP London (European Short Film) • Nashville Jewish Film Festival (NJFF) — Student Film Competition • Oberhausen International Short Film Festival — Grand Prize • Odense International Film Festival — Grand Prix • Potsdam Sehsüchte — Best Fiction • San Francisco Jewish Film Festival — Best Short Film • Student Academy Awards, USA — Honorary Foreign Film Award – Best Foreign Film • São Paulo International Short Film Festival — MostraInternacionale– Best Film • Taipei Film Festival — Golden Lion International Student Film Competition • Tampere International Short Film Festival — Grand Prix • Tel Aviv International Student Film Festival — Best International Short • Tribeca Film Festival — Student Visionary Award • U Frame International Academic Film Festival — Jury First Prize • Dubai International Film Festival — People’s Choice Award — The Heart of Jenin • Leipzig DOK Festival — Best Documentary • Valladolid International Film Festival — Best Documentary • Warsaw International Film Festival — Best Documentary • Warsaw Jewish Film Festival — Special Mention • Best Documentary Feature • Best Fiction Short — Roads • 2009 — Flickerfest International Short Film Festival — Best Film • Cinema for Peace Awards — Most Valuable Documentary of the Years — The Heart of Jenin • European Film Awards — European Documentary • The Hague Movies that Matter Festival — Audience Award • AllRights Award • San Diego Jewish Film Festival — Audience Award — Roads • Utah Arts Festival (Fear No Film) — Audience Award • Washington Jewish Film Festival — Audience Award • 2010 — International Documentary Association — IDA Award — The Heart of Jenin • News & Documentary Emmy Awards — Emmy • 2011 — Nuremberg Film Festival "Turkey-Germany" — Ongoren Prize • 2019 — Mammoth Film Festival — Audience Award — We Die Young • Best Feature • Grand Jury Award • Best Screenplay
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.aftau.org. Israeli Student Film Sets Guinness World Record. 5 April 2017.
- 2.Yonatan, Sredni. Best picture: prize-winning Israeli student film "Roads" sets Guinness World Record. jewishwebsite.com. 26 May 2017.
- 3.RedCarpetCrash. Movie Review: 'We Die Young'. RedCarpetCrash.com. 2019-03-02.
- 4.Lior Geller. IMDb.
- 5.Yossman, K. J. 'The Invisible Man' Star Oliver Jackson-Cohen, 'Grantchester's' Jeremy Neumark Jones to Lead World War II Feature 'The World Will Tremble' (EXCLUSIVE). Variety. 2023-12-18.
- 6.Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan Film. The World Will Tremble Q+A with director Lior Geller (4/23). 2025-04-24.
- 7.Anne, Joseph. The art of the short. thejc.com. 6 March 2017.
- 8.Yonatan, Sredni. Best Picture: Prize-Winning Israeli Student Film "Roads" Sets Guinness World Record. nocamels.com. 10 May 2017.
- 9.Dave, McNary. Eric Eisner spies 'Alone'. variety.com. 19 January 2010.
- 10.Evan, Jacobs. L+E Pictures Is Alone in Damascus. movieweb.com. 19 January 2010.
- 11.latimesblogs.latimes.com. Israel spy Eli Cohen will get the feature-film treatment. 14 January 2010.
- 12.Jean-Claude Van Damme's 'We Die Young' to Open Mammoth Film Festival. The Hollywood Reporter. 15 January 2019.
- 13.We Die Young Blu-ray & DVD (Lionsgate) cityonfire.com.
- 14.RedCarpetCrash. Movie Review: 'We Die Young'. RedCarpetCrash.com. 2019-03-02.
- 15.The World Will Tremble. miamijewishfilmfestival. 16 January 2025.
- 16.Costantino, Lauren. Powerful stories. Timely themes. Miami Jewish Film Festival returns for 28th year. Miami Herald. January 9, 2025.
- 17.Omotade, Lade. Netflix Audiences Are Hooked on This Overlooked 109-Minute World War II Drama. Collider. 2026-02-23.
- 18.The World Will Tremble Rotten Tomatoes. www.rottentomatoes.com.
- 19.Anderman, Nirit. Film on Arab Boy's Unlikely Friendship With Israeli Ex-soldier Sets Guinness World Record. haaretz.com. 8 April 2017.
- 20.israelfilmcenter.org. Roads.
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 24 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Film memorabilia
36,309 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
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- Lionel NgakanePerson
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- Lior ShamrizPerson
- Lipika Singh DaraiPerson
- Lis NilheimPerson
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