Born in 1971 in Rostov-on-Don. Rastorguev studied at the Philosophy Department of Rostov State University and graduated from St. Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy. Rastorguev worked as a director on the state regional channel Don TV, but was fired along with the crew for directing the documentary Clean Thursday(2004). He also worked at the St. Petersburg office of Russia’s NTV Channel. In 2001 he founded Kino Studio. Rastorguev’s films were entered into various foreign festivals. Awards: the Laurel Branch at Moscow’s ArtDocFest (Mommies, 2001, and Tender’s Heat. Wild Wild Beach, 2007), the Grand Prize at the Russia Documentary Festival (Mommies, 2001), the Special Jury Award at the Amsterdam IFF (Tender’s Heat. Wild Wild Beach, 2007), the White Elephant Award from the Russian Guild of Film Critics (Tender’s Heat. Wild Wild Beach, 2007), Russia’s Triumph Prize Tender’s Heat. Wild Wild Beach, 2007). Rastorguev was killed in 2018 while filming a documentary about Russian mercenaries operating in the Central African Republic.