Three films by Tatarstani filmmakers are selected for the international program of the XX “Altyn Minbar” Kazan International Film Festival, which will take place in Kazan from September 6 to 11. More than that, 11 more films are presented in the national competition.

As it was mentioned earlier, the shortlist for the XX “Altyn Minbar” Kazan International Film Festival has been formed. This year, the organizing committee received 814 applications from 47 countries around the world. The official selection for the festival includes 51 films from 27 countries. There are 10 films per nomination: “feature films”, “short feature films”, “documentary films”, “animated films,” and 11 films in the national competition, which includes films produced in Tatarstan and those about Tatarstan.

The main “Feature Film” nomination presents the Tatarstani film “The Mountain of Lovers” by Salavat Yuzeev. In the “Documentary Films” nomination there is “Mon” by Radif Kashapov. “Learn Tatar with Ak Bure” by Farit Farisov is presented in the “Animated films” section.

The feature film “The Mountain of Lovers” is based on the poetic novel of the same name by the national poet of Tatarstan Ildar Yuzeev. The film is written and directed by the only heir of the writer, his son Salavat Yuzeev.

The filming took place in Ary village of the Atnya district of the Republic of Tatarstan, Moscow, as well as at the “Belarusfilm” national film studio in the city of Minsk.

 “The production team of “The Mountain of Lovers” reached a new level. The shooting period was in the summer and fall. In February 2024, we shoot the winter scenes in Belarus. According to the scenario, the hero finds himself in a war and then in a death camp. Of course, the best place is “Belarusfilm”. A cooperation agreement with the film studio was signed in fall 2023. Minsk residents took an active part in organizing the shooting, said the film producer, director of GBUK RT “Tatarkino” and executive director of the “Altyn Minbar” film festival Miliausha Aituganova.

The main characters in the film were played by Bulat Gataullin the Kariev theater actor, and Elsa Karimova, the theater studio actress. Also, the film stars Ildus Akhmetzynov, Rafik Tagirov, Liliya Sergeeva, Dilyara Rakhimova, Gulchachak Khafizova, Liliya Makhmutova, Halima Iskanderova, Minvali Gabdullin, Raushan Sharif and Ildus Gabdrakhmanov. 

In her interview for the online newspaper “Real’noe vremya”, Marina Galitskaya, a member of the Cinematographers Union of Tatarstan, producer, and screenwriter, said the following: For the first time, the relevant ecological topic of preserving natural sanctuaries as the spiritual and cultural heritage of the nation was raised by the poet Ildar Yuzeev. The heroine defends her hill as a symbol of a connection with a beloved one. It became a sacred place for her, where one could feel the presence of a young man and have memories of love and vows. The scenario is developed in a road movie format, with flashbacks of the youth of the main characters and an optimistic end with the salvation of “The Mountain of Lovers”.

Presented in the documentary competition, “Mon. Explanation” is devoted to the untranslatable Tatar word meaning as state of mind, melody, and even a sort of aspiration.

The idea came to my mind when I was standing by the theater stage MON, the one where the “Mon” performance takes place. According to the plot, three musicians try to explain each other and themselves the meaning of this word. And I thought about clarifying that in the format of a documentary film,” said Radif Kashapov the director and deputy chief editor of the internet newspaper “Real’noe vremya” in his op-ed.

Experts, musicians, literary scholars, poets, and linguists discuss the roots of the “untranslatable word”. Thanks to cameraman and documentary filmmaker Jury Gvozd the last interview of the National Artist of the Tatar ASSR, well-known singer Ilham Shakirov in which he gives his own definition of the notion, is included. “Mon is mon”, says the artist.

The new nomination for the XX “Altyn Minbar” Kazan International Film Festival “The Best Animated Film” includes the film by the Chairman of the Regional Public Organization “Tatar National Cultural Autonomy of Moscow” “Learning Tatar with Ak Bure”. The animated TV show “Ak bure” is an innovative project aimed at raising interest in learning Tatar language and culture among children. The main characters are a young wolf and his friends. They teach young audiences the words and expressions that can be used right after watching.

“The future is unimaginable without knowledge of the past and native language. Unfortunately, the Tatar language faces degradation, but we can still prevent it. It is crucial to start learning your native language since early childhood; that is why we made a colorful and dynamic animated film”, was explained by Farit Farisov in his interview for the Internet portal “Billion of Tatars”.

The project embraces both modern and traditional teaching methods and innovative animation and computer technologies. Click here to check on the short-list of “Altyn Minbar” Kazan International Film Festival: https://kazan-mfmk.com/en/news/news/official-selection-of-the-xx-kazan-international-film-festival-altyn-minbar/ We note that “Altyn Minbar” is included in the list of cinema projects supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation. The Kazan International Film Festival is held with the support of the Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov and the Ministry of Culture of Russia, as well as in partnership with the strategic vision group “Russia – Islamic World”.