A curious mix of cultures runs in the blood of director, screenwriter and actress Ishtar Yasin. She was born in Moscow, Russia, in the paradigmatic year of 1968, a daughter of Iraqi theater director and actor Mohsen Yasin and Chilean-Costa Rican dancer and choreographer Elena Gutiérrez.

A director of short films and documentaries such as Te recuerdo como eras (2004), La mesa feliz (2005), Les invisibles (2010) and Apocalipsis de nuestro tiempo (2011), her most recent feature film, Dos Fridas (Costa Rica-Mexico, 2018) has been featured at important festivals in various parts of the world and won the Lucía Award for Best Direction at the XV International Film Festival of Gibara. The film, inspired by the relationship between Costa Rican nurse Judith Ferreto and Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, also won the Lucia Award in the Best Photography section, by Spanish Mauro Herce.