Biography

Nelli Tsay is a Russian-born actress of Korean and Eastern European Jewish heritage. Raised in Saint Petersburg, she trained from an early age in piano, singing, and classical ballet, developing a strong foundation in the performing arts.

At eleven, she spent a year in Chicago studying English. Soon after returning to Russia, she was cast in the leading role of a television series that ran for four seasons. She later moved to Moscow, where she continued her screen career, appearing in several television and film productions.

Nelli studied acting at GITIS before continuing her training in Paris at L’École Claude Mathieu. There she performed in French, working on classical texts by Molière, Racine, and Claudel. She subsequently lived in Los Angeles for several years, where she began writing her own music.

She received the Best Actress award for her performance in the French film The Salt of Earth. Working across Russia, France, and the United States, Nelli Tsay performs in multiple languages and is drawn to internationally oriented projects that combine strong visual storytelling with psychologically complex characters.
- IMDb mini biography by: Lena Munits