Alexander Nanau studied film directing at the Berlin Film and Television Academy. His first documentary film was "Peter Zadek stages Peer Gynt" in 2006, which shows the staging process of Peter Zadek and his crew. This was followed in 2009 by "Lumea văzută de Ion B". The film about a homeless artist won the International Emmy Award in 2010. In 2014 Nanau realised "Toto și surorile lui". The film about three Roma siblings was nominated for the 2015 European Film Award and was awarded the Prix France Culture Cinéma at the 2016 Cannes International Film Festival. With his documentary "Collective - Corruption Kills", he won the International Documentary Film Competition at the 15th Zurich Film Festival in 2019. "Collective" won the European Film Award in 2020 and became Romania's Oscar entry. The film was nominated for two Oscars, category Best International Film and Best Documentary. In the summer of 2021, Nanau became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In the same year, he was appointed to the competition jury of the 78th Venice Film Festival.