MWFF 2015: Under Heaven

ASMAN ALDYNDA / UNDER HEAVEN

2015, Colour, Kyrgyzstan, First Films World Competition 

This film from Kyrghystan won a Special Mentions of the First Feature Film Jury at the Montreal World Film Festival 2015. 

The film shows us a rural setting in Kyrghystan, a Central Asia country that we, in the west, know very little about. This former Soviet Union republic had fallen on hard economical times after the fall of the Soviet Union. Many of its inhabitants have to travel to Russia to find work to be able to support themselves and their families back home. Most do honest work, but some either become victims to, or consciously choose the make-fast-money-whichever-way-possible schemes, even if they are criminal. 

The film shows us the Kyrghyz customs, some rituals and believes. But the main theme is the relationship between two brothers, what is important to each one of them, what they value the most in their lives, as well as how they relate to others, work, money, love, their community and country. Each of the brothers has a strong character, yet they are very different and choose different paths in life. What they have in common is their attraction to their neighbour girl Saltanat. Her name is symbolic, since in many Asian languages it means: realm, kingdom, monarchy, celebration, festivities or triumph (see here). So the brother's individual relationship with this girl basically symbolizes their relationship to life and even spirituality at large, their relationship to their country, the honesty of their actions, intentions, and workmanship. Each provides an example of what type of society their approach to life would create and how strong that "kingdom" would be.

The film is basically a retelling of the biblical story of Cain and Abel within the contemporary Kyrghystan setting. The brother's names Kerim and Aman also appear to be symbolic. Though they are Kyrghiz names, they seem to have been chosen to come the closest possible to those of the biblical personages. The film, though simply showing the everyday lives of two young Kyrghiz men, illustrates anew some core human principles that were immortalized in the Bible for the future generations to come, including ours.

Film's Official Synopsis

This modern day re-working of the biblical tale of Cain and Abel is set in a remote mountain village in Central Asia. Two brothers, rebellious Kerim and conscientious Aman, live with their mother and work at the family stonemason business. Their father has been forced to find work in Russia in order to pay off Kerim's debts, incurred as a result of his eldest son's drug dealing activities. The brothers both fall for a local village girl, Saltanat, which ultimately leads to a bitter dispute and unforeseen and tragic consequences. 

Director

Born in 1967, Dalmira Tilepbergen graduated philology from Kyrgyz National University and has worked as a teacher, journalist, librarian and assistant director at the Kyrgyzfilm National Studio. She has written and edited several volumes of poetry. She began making her own films in 2001 with a short, Cap for a Falcon, and followed quickly with other shorts and documentaries, including Fragile Wings (2004), Crush Down from the Seventh Floor (2005), First Born (2007), Year of Fire (2011) and Well Being (2012). UNDER HEAVEN is her first fiction feature. 

Production Team

Director : Dalmira Tilepbergen

Screenwriter : Dalmira Tilepbergen

Cinematographer : Akjol Bekbolotov

Editor : Eldiar Madakim

Cast : Anvar Osmonaliev, Taalaikan Abazova, Nurjigit Kanaev, Munara Dooronbekova

Music : Murzali Jenbaev
Film production and Sales : Prod.: Goulmira Kerimova, Kyrgyzfilm, 1 Dinara Asanova Street, Bishkek (Kirghizistan), tél.: +99 (631) 231 48 75, dalmira.cinema@gmail.com

Projections

Saturday August 29, 2015 - 07:00 PM - CINÉMA QUARTIER LATIN 9
Sunday August 30, 2015 - 05:00 PM - CINÉMA QUARTIER LATIN 9
Friday September 4, 2015 - 04:00 PM - CINÉMA QUARTIER LATIN 11

Image courtesy of MWFF and the director of the film.
Film review © Nadia Slejskova