Nina Paley (1968, Champaign IL, USA) is a longtime veteran of syndicated comic strips, creating "Fluff" (Universal Press Syndicate), "The Hots" (King Features), and her own alternative weekly "Nina's Adventures." In 1998 she began making independent animated festival films, including the controversial yet popular environmental short, "The Stork." In 2002 Nina followed her then-husband to Trivandrum, India, where she read her first Ramayana. This inspired her first feature, Sita Sings the Blues, which she animated and produced single-handedly over the course of 5 years on a home computer. Nina teaches at Parsons School of Design in Manhattan and is a 2006 Guggenheim Fellow.

Selected awards: Jury Special Mention (Berlinale),Cristal for Best Feature (Annecy), Jury Honorable Mention (Ottawa), Best Script (Atene IFF)

Selected festival history: Leeds IFF, Seattle IFF, Anima Mundi, Stuttgart ITFS, Holland Animation Film Festival, Anima Brussels, Anifest