Georgii Makarov was born in Tiflis, Georgia, in 1894. He was a director, script writer and actor.

He studied at the Lazarev Institute of Foreign Languages in Moscow and in 1915 joined Aleksandr Khanzhonkov’s film atelier — a production and distribution company that was formed in 1906. His film career was interrupted by the onslaught of the First World War, during which time Makarov worked on the front line as part of the administration of the Red Cross. From 1919 onwards Makarov was a member of the commission for the development of film industry in Georgia, progressing in 1921 to the role of director at the film department of Georgia’s Narkompros (later renamed Georgia Film). During this time he also started teaching at the state film school. In 1928 Makarov wrote and directed A Woman from the Fair, a Soviet screen adaptation of Desire Under the Elms, a play by Eugene O’Neill.

As an actor, Makarov participated in the critically acclaimed Little Red Devils. Released in 1923 and directed by Ivan Perestiani, it was the first domestic box-office hit of the Soviet film industry and the first to be reviewed in the New York Times. However, his cinematic career ended relatively early with his final film, See You Soon, produced in 1935. Although he lived for a further 30 years, continual illness prevented Makarov from making any additional films. He died in Tbilisi in 1966.