Educated in Sri Lanka and Los Angeles, USA. He has had numerous jobs in the film industry and has worked with the worlds prestigious filmmakers – David Lean, Carol Reed, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, John Boorman, Regis Wargnier and John Milius and has Line Produced / Supervised, several western films shot in Asia, including “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom”, “Mother Teresa” and “Jungle Book II”. “A Love Story” and “Witness to a Killing”, that he wrote and directed, have represented Sri Lanka at the international film festivals in Tokyo, Cairo, India. His production of “The Pilgrimage” won the Presidential Award for 1999-2000, and “Mansion by the Lake”, directed by Lester James Peries was screened at the Cannes IFF in 2003 and was Sri Lanka's official entry to the Academy Awards in California, USA. In 2007, he was awarded the Presidential Pioneer Award for his contribution to the Sri Lankan film industry. His film “Road From Elephant Pass” was the official Sri Lankan entry to the 82nd Academy Awards in Los Angeles in 2010 and won a Merit Award at the New York and Television Film Festival held in Las Vegas. In 2011 his film, “A Common Man”, starring Sir Ben Kingsley and Ben Cross, won 3 awards at the Madrid IFF. In 2014 he directed the movie “A Love Like This!”. He is the chairman of Asian Film Location Services Ltd servicing international films and commercials shot in Sri Lanka, the Maldives Islands and Borneo.

In 2016 Chandran Rutnam is a member of jury of main contest.