Cyril Aris is a Lebanese Director & Screenwriter and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® .

His feature A Sad and Beautiful World (2025) premiered at the 82nd Venice Film Festival (Giornate Degli Autori), winning the Audience Award. Named a New York Times Critic’s Pick and selected as Lebanon’s candidate for the 98th Academy Awards®, it played at major festivals worldwide, including BFI London, Karlovy Vary, Shanghai, Marrakesh, Sydney, San Francisco and Palm Springs, earning more than 25 awards, including Best Screenplay at the Red Sea Film Festival and Best Film at the Asian World Film Festival in Los Angeles, and Audience Awards in Valladolid (Seminci), Barcelona (D’A Film Festival), Florence (Middle East Film), Ottawa (Ottawa IFF), Ljubljana (LIFF), Trondheim (Kosmorama IFF), among others.

His documentary Dancing on the Edge of a Volcano (2023) received a Sundance post-production grant and premiered in competition at Karlovy Vary (Jury Special Mention) before touring over 100 festivals. He also directed the award-winning documentary The Swing (2018) and the TIFF-premiering short The President’s Visit (2017).

An alumnus of Columbia University (MFA), Cyril's editing credits include Mounia Akl's award-winning Costa Brava, Lebanon (Venice, TIFF, BFI London).

Cyril is represented by London-based agency Independent Talent and managed by 75East.