Daniel Rafaelić was born on June 19th, 1977, in Bitola (Macedonia). He graduated from both primary and secondary school in Zagreb, and in 1996 enrolled into the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb and graduated with a history degree in 2002 (Thesis: ‘Amarna Era of Egyptian Art History’). In 2003 he enrolled, at the same university, into a postgraduate history programme, and in 2006 enrolled into the doctorate programme Modern and Contemporary Croatian History. From 2002 to 2010, he worked as a filmologist /archivist in the Croatian Film Archives of the Croatian State Archives. From 2007 to 2009 he headed the department for the conservation and restoration of film materials. He focused on researching local and international film history, as well as searching film archives for lost and forgotten film records in Croatia. He is an associate at both the Academy of Dramatic Arts and the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb.
In May 2017 apointed as Chief Executive of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre for the next four years.