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A land of superlatives, from its dramatic topography to its position as a geopolitical crossroads within Central Asia, Kazakhstan’s film culture in the post-Soviet era has given rise to a generation of filmmakers and a plurality of film forms that display the country’s kaleidoscopic sense of identity and its increasing cultural engagement with the world. Once a center of Soviet film production activity, whose landscapes grace the iconic Ivan the Terrible by Soviet master Sergei Eisenstein, the modern nation, with its complex checkerboard of ethnicities and its unique conjunction of defining national narratives, fuels cinematic statements that artfully construct and necessarily test the ideal of “the nation.” Working across an array of genres, filmmakers inscribe depictions of ethnic and tribal identity, clashes between tradition and modernity, and the legacy of Soviet rule and the momentous economic transformations of the post-Soviet era. Bold cinematic voices, marshalling both Kazakh and international resources, offer innovative storytelling modes, as well as engagements with world cinema’s most well-traveled genres, finding acclaim and commercial success as the Kazakh national cinema assumes its place on the world stage. With this series, we are pleased to survey some of the leading films and filmmakers of this moment; to screen select titles from the longer history of Kazakh cinema, in new and restored prints, and to open our series with a live musical celebration on June 10.
FREE Admission to the traditional Kazakh musical ensemble TURAN on June 10!
Special thanks: His Excellency Erlan Idrissov, Ambassador of the Republicof Kazakhstan, Washington D.C; Helix Films: Steven-Charles Jaffe, Honorary Consul of Kazakhstan in Los Angeles, Gaukhar Noortas, Kevin Foo, Zarina Mamyrkulova; Oxenuk Capital; Air Astana; Vanetik International; Cineteca de Bologna; Kazakhfilm JSC; Fortissimo Films; Zeitgeist Films; Palisades Tartan; Riviera Travel & Tours.
