Yana Ugrekhelidze was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 1984. After graduating with a degree in translation and linguistics in Georgia, she completed a BA in communication design at the Peter Behrens School of Arts in Düsseldorf, and a diploma in film and animation at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. Her first animated film, Summer Story, premiered at the 2017 International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and was a semi-finalist in the Student Academy Awards. Her graduation film Armed Lullaby premiered at the 69th Berlinale in the Generation Section. Instructions for Survival is Yana's debut film.