Christian Frei was born in 1959 in Schönenwerd, Switzerland. He studied visual media in the Department of Journalism and Communication at the University of Fribourg. He made his first documentary in 1981. Since 1984 he has been working as an independent filmmaker and producer.

In 1997 he produced his first feature length documentary, RICARDO, MIRIAM Y FIDEL, the portrait of a Cuban family torn between loyalty to revolutionary ideals and the desire to emigrate to the United States.

In 2001, this is followed by WAR PHOTOGRAPHER, the portrait of James Nachtwey, whom Frei accompanied to various places of war. This film is nominated for an Oscar in the category of «Documentary Feature» and receives twelve international awards.

THE GIANT BUDDHAS, his third documentary feature, wins the 2005 Silver Dove at the Leipzig Film Festival and enters competition at the renowned film festivals of Sundance and Toronto.

In 2009, his newest doumentary feature SPACE TOURISTS is invited again to numerous international film festival and enters competition in Amsterdam and Sundance, where he is the first Swiss film to win the „World Cinema Directing Award“.

Christian Frei is an associate lecturer on Reflection Competence at the University of St. Gallen.

2006 - 2009 he was president of the «Documentary Film Commission» of the Swiss Ministry of Culture.

Since August 2010 he is President of the Swiss Film Academy.

He lives and works in Zurich.