Mother’s Paradise

Colour, 35 mm
Kazakhstan, 2010, 80 min
WP – World premiere
Section: East of the West - Films in Competition

Synopsis

Amir and Serikpai are children of school age. They are growing up in rural Kazakhstan without their father, who went off to Russia in search of work and never came back. Their mother, Polina, is raising them, and they share their home with Polina’s old father and his sister. Without male support, the daily grind is often hard for Polina, and she finds that she cannot cope. The boys are taunted at school by their classmates, but neither shame nor dishonour affects the great love they have for their mother. This film is enhanced by its wonderful cast, and also by its screenplay, written by famous Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf for his Kyrgyz colleague who, this time, chose Kazakhstan as his location. Kubat’s social drama betrays the raw poetic style characteristic for Central Asian cinema, and will delight all viewers who expect a prominent display of pure, strong emotion.

About the director

Aktan Arym Kubat (b. 1957, Kuntu, Kyrgyzstan), also known as Aktan Abdykalikov, studied at the Kyrgyz State Institute of Arts from 1976 to 1980, then worked as an artist for a film studio in Bishkek. He has been directing since 1990. He began making a name for himself with his short film The Dog Was Walking By (It zhugirdende, 1990). The film The Swing (Altybakan, 1993) was awarded the Grand Prix in Locarno and the FIPRESCI Prize in Turin. This was followed by the short film The Stop (Ajaldama, 1995). He competed at KVIFF in 1999 in the East of the West section with the film The Adopted Son (Beshkempir), in which he cast his own son Mirlan in the title role. He also collaborated with his son on the film Maimil (2001). In 2010 he turned out the film The Light Thief (Svet-Ake), screened at Cannes last year in the Directors’ Fortnight section .