The Cinema of Central Asia usually refers to the cinema of five
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
n countries (
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
,
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...
,
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
,
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
and
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
). Central Asian cinema can further be divided into three historical periods,
Soviet Central Asia
Soviet Central Asia (russian: link=no, Советская Средняя Азия, Sovetskaya Srednyaya Aziya) was the part of Central Asia administered by the Soviet Union between 1918 and 1991, when the Central Asian republics declared ind ...
n film (1919–1987), a New Wave of Central Asian film (1988–1992), and the modern period of film of the independent Central Asian countries (1992–present).
Cinema of Kazakhstan
The cinema of Kazakhstan was recognized as a hub of Soviet documentaries and "Eastern style" romantics.
Almaty, Kazakhstan is the starting place of the Kazakh "New Wave" of perestroika-era cinema (see
Rashid Nugmanov
Rashid Nugmanov (also written Rachid Nougmanov; russian: Рашид Мусаевич Нугманов; born March 19, 1954, in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan) is a Kazakhs, Kazakh film director, dissent, dissident, political activistDruker, Jeremy, (2003-11- ...
). The independent film in Kazakhstan now is characterized by historical epics, such as Sergei Dvortsevoy's "Tulip".
Cinema of Kyrgyzstan
Early Kyrgyz film can be characterized by Russian-language Soviet films, such as "The First Teacher" by
Andrei Konchalovsky
Andrei Sergeyevich Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky (russian: link=no, Андрей Сергеевич Михалков-Кончаловский; born 20 August 1937) is a Russian filmmaker. He has worked in Soviet, Hollywood, and contemporary Russian ...
. Later Kyrgyz films, such as
Beshkempir
''Beshkempir'' (released as ''Beshkempir the Adopted Son'' in Anglophone countries, ''Le fils adoptif: Beshkempir'' in Francophone countries) is a 1998 Kyrgyz language film. Shot and produced in Kyrgyzstan, it is representative of the first wave ...
were filmed in the
Kyrgyz language and dealt with themes of urban and rural differences in Kyrygyzstan.
Cinema of Tajikistan
Tajik cinema in the Soviet era was marked by propaganda and an emphasis on secularism. Since Tajikistan's independence, Tajik cinema has grown into its own. Because of the
Tajik Civil War
The Tajikistani Civil War ( tg, Ҷанги шаҳрвандии Тоҷикистон, translit=Jangi shahrvandiyi Tojikiston / Çangi shahrvandiji Toçikiston; russian: Гражданская война в Таджикистане), also known ...
from 1992–1997, virtually all of Tajik cinema before the new millennium was made abroad. Drawing from cinematic traditions in the East, West, and South (particularly from
Iranian cinema
The Cinema of Iran ( Persian: سینمای ایران), also known as the Cinema of Persia, refers to the cinema and film industries in Iran which produce a variety of commercial films annually. Iranian art films have garnered international fame ...
), Tajik directors have been able to create influential films about the social and historical conditions of their land. Some major films include Bakhtyar Khudojnazarov's
osh ba kosh
The cinema of Tajikistan is held back by a lack of government funding.
Cinema of Turkmenistan
Turkmen cinema has historically been highly regulated by the state government and has been reflective of the political trends. Cinema in Turkmenistan was completely abolished by President
Saparmurat Niyazov in the year 2000. Several important films were created in the 1990s including Little Angel, Make Me Happy by director Sapar Usmanov. The ban on cinema has now been lifted.
Cinema of Uzbekistan
Uzbek film has a long list of films produced in the Soviet era and the modern era. The history of Uzbek cinema can be divided into two periods: the cinema of the
Soviet Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ) is the common English name for the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (Uzbek SSR; uz, Ўзбекистон Совет Социалистик Республикаси, Oʻzbekiston Sovet Sotsialistik Respublikasi, in Russian: Уз ...
(1924–1991) and the cinema of the independent
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
(1991-present). Films of the Soviet period were shot either in
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
or
Uzbek. Most critically acclaimed films of the Soviet period include films such as ''
Maftuningman'' (1958), ''
Mahallada duv-duv gap'' (1960), and ''
Shum bola'' (1977).
See also
*
Cinema of Asia
Asian cinema refers to the film industries and films produced in the continent of Asia. However, in countries like the United States, it is often used to refer only to the cinema of East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. West Asian cinema is ...
*
Cinema of the Soviet Union
The cinema of the Soviet Union includes films produced by the constituent republics of the Soviet Union reflecting elements of their pre-Soviet culture, language and history, albeit they were all regulated by the central government in Moscow. M ...
Further reading
1. Ten Years Under the Winds of Different Ideologies (Gulnara Abikeeva)
http://www.kinokultura.com/CA/A2tenyears.html
2. Central Asian Films (Jared Rapfogel)
http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2003/feature-articles/central_asian_films/
3. Young Kazakh Filmmakers: New “New Wave” on the Road (Jane Knox-Voina)
http://www.kinokultura.com/2010/27-knoxvoina.shtml
{{World cinema
Central Asian culture
Asian cinema
Asian cinema by region