KAZAKHSTAN: Blockbuster film 'Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe', a patriotic cinema creation from state-administered Kazakhfilm studios

Record ID: 836030

  • Title: KAZAKHSTAN: Blockbuster film 'Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe', a patriotic cinema creation from state-administered Kazakhfilm studios
  • Date: 8th June 2012
  • Summary: ALMATY, KAZAKHSTAN (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIOR KAZAKHFILM BUILDING SCREEN SHOWING 'MYN BALA' FILM EXTRACT VARIOUS WOMEN WORKING AT SOUND MIXING DECK COMPUTER SHOWING SOUND AND PICTURE EDIT FOR 'MYN BALA' AKAN SATAYEV, DIRECTOR OF "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" FILM WALKING INTO ROOM SATAYEV'S HANDS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) DIRECTOR OF "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" FILM, AKAN SATAYEV, SAYING: "Honestly, our market is not large, there are 16 million people in our country. So paying for films with a budget of 10 or over 10 million US dollars from within the country is unrealistic. So, of course, we hope for exports. If the product is very high-quality, interesting, watchable and understandable in any corner of the world, of course this would be great, and our film could be sold abroad. Nevertheless, even within the country we have achieved some good results and have broken a record, some decent money, over 2 million US dollars." VARIOUS "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" ACTRESS KURALAI ANARBEKOVA DOING VOICE WORK FOR FILM FILM PLAYING ON SCREEN (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" ACTRESS KURALAI ANARBEKOVA, SAYING: "This (film is about) history. If we now live in a peaceful, care-free time, this speaks about our ancestors' lives, who had to fight for, shall we say, our independence, so that we can live the way we do now. This is why this story is so fascinating, because we tried to convey inner emotions." "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" ACTOR ASYLKHAN TOLEPOV TAKING SEAT AT TABLE "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" POSTER ON WALL (SOUNDBITE) (Kazakh) "MYN BALA: WARRIORS OF THE STEPPE" ACTOR ASYLKHAN TOLEPOV, SAYING: "We had to prepare for this film for half a year. Two months were spent in training with stuntmen, with Zhaidarbek Kunguzhinov (stuntman). We learned to use a bow and arrow and a sword while on horseback. Then we were busy with acting training, acting speeches, acting skills. We had come to this film with a lot of preparation under our belt. We spent six months in training".
  • Embargoed: 23rd June 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kazakhstan
  • City:
  • Country: Kazakhstan
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  • Reuters ID: LVA6K6S0LNO7K180UHM0PF84OO6K
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  • Story Text: A new Kazakh epic film, set on the 18th century Central Asian steppe, has broken box-office records with profits of close to $3 million this year.
    "Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe" focuses on the story of an 18th century orphan boy who amasses an army of thousands of teenagers to fight his homeland's Mongol enemies in the 1729 Battle of Anrakai.
    The film, produced by state-run Kazakhfilm Studios, premiered in May, and has already outrun other blockbuster films out in Kazakhstan, eclipsing this year's 'The Avengers' Hollywood action movie.
    Production costs for the action film, which was shot in 4 different locations around the Tien Shan mountains, reached an estimated $12 million, which is unusually high for the film industry in that part of the world.
    "Honestly, our market is not large, there are 16 million people in our country. So paying for films with a budget of 10 or over 10 million US dollars from within the country is unrealistic. So, of course, we hope for exports. If the product is very high-quality, interesting, watchable and understandable in any corner of the world, of course this would be great, and our film could be sold abroad. Nevertheless, even within the country we have achieved some good results and have broken a record, some decent money, over 2 million US dollars," Myn Bala film director Akan Satayev told Reuters, adding that much of the film's funding came from the Kazakhstan government.
    Over 20 thousand people auditioned for the film before 3 lead actors were chosen.
    Actress Kuralai Anarbekova played warrior-girl Korlan in a lead role.
    "This (film is about) history. If we now live in a peaceful, care-free time, this speaks about our ancestors' lives, who had to fight for, shall we say, our independence, so that we can live the way we do now. This is why this story is so fascinating, because we tried to convey inner emotions," Anarbekova told Reuters.
    Assylkhan Tolepov who plays Sartay, the lead role, has been launched into Kazakh stardom, saying he had some 1,200 people 'befriend' him on Russian popular social networking site 'Vkontakte' in just one day.
    "We had to prepare for this film for half a year. Two months were spent in training with stuntmen, with Zhaidarbek Kunguzhinov (stuntman). We learned to use a bow and arrow and a sword while on horseback. Then we were busy with acting training, acting speeches, acting skills. We had come to this film with a lot of preparation under our belt. We spent six months in training," Tolepov told Reuters.
    The film has received massive support in Kazakhstan, drawing movie-goers of all ages.
    "I liked the film "Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe" very much. This is a well-made film. This is the first film of its kind in Kazakh history," pensioner Tursynbai Abdreyev told Reuters.
    "I have watched the battles which our forefathers had to fight in for the way towards independence and it brought tears to my eyes. It reminded me of the stories which my mother and father had told me," another pensioner, Rakhima Sadyk Kyzy told Reuters.
    Many film-goers reported feeling pride for their country after watching the film.
    "After the movie I felt intense patriotic feelings. You become imbued with patriotism and the film is also very informative, it teaches you to not forget your past and be proud of it," Dias Khusainov, a recently graduated student told Reuters.
    There are high hopes for the film, which was shown at Film Market - the Cannes Film Festival's business counterpart - to improve Kazakhstan's image at home as well as abroad.
    The state-sponsored and produced film is however, not without, what some call, propaganda. The filmwith a quote from Kazakhstan's veteran president Nursultan Nazarbayev claiming that the events shown in 'Myn Bala' marked the beginning of the Kazakh people's 'long fight for freedom' - a struggle which it states ended only when Nazarbayev brought the country to 'real independence' several centuries later.
    Nazarbayev, a former steelworker and member of the last Soviet Communist Politburo, has held a tight grip on power for more than two decades and is accused by political opponents of stifling dissent in his country of 16.7 million people.
    The 71-year-old leader has prioritized economic growth over democracy. Kazakhstan's economy, worth $185 billion at the end of last year, had more than doubled in size since the first meeting of the Council of Foreign Investors in 1998, he said.
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