Winner of the Cannes Film Festival became a star of Russian cinema

Documentary filmmaker Zaki Abdrakhmanova filming her debut “Dad died on Saturday”

Debutante Zaki Abdrakhmanova has just finished shooting the film “Daddy died on Saturday.” One of the main roles was played by the owner of the “Silver Palm Branch” of the Cannes Film Festival – Kazakh actress Samal Yeslyamova.

Zaka Abdrakhmanova is a screenwriter and director of documentaries. She studied at the school of Marina Razbezhkina. Her films “Zhanym” and “Anniversary Year” were noted at many non-fiction film festivals. Together with Natalia Meshchaninova, Zaka worked on the series “My Mom’s Penguins”. She became the author of the idea, screenwriter and music editor. And before that, she took part in the projects “Solar Line” and “Three Minutes of Silence” by Boris Khlebnikov. In particular, for the scenario of “Three Minutes of Silence” she collected documentary material on a fishing ship in the Barents Sea.

“I really wanted to make an active debut, where the characters would not reflect on the sea for two hours, but would do something to cope with their annoyance. Even if they do it stupidly. The film is still in the works, but I hope that it will be spectator-friendly and understandable, and will not go with the mark “the movie is not for everyone.” Cinema should be for everyone, it’s just that it can disturb different things for everyone, ”says Zaka Abdrakhmanova about her acting debut.

The plot of the film is this. A 30-year-old Muscovite, Aiko, has lost her father, with whom she did not communicate for many years. He was a real monster, and she does not feel sorry for him. But for some reason she goes to Kazakhstan for the funeral. There he sees his new father’s family for the first time. Her half-sister is insufferable, little brother out of this world. And the stepmother is the same age as Aiko herself. And for them, her father is not a monster at all.

The team is interesting. These are producers Natalia Smirnova, Sergey Selyanov and Natalya Drozd, director of photography Mikhail Khursevich, production designer Tatyana Azarova. The main role was played by 23-year-old actress Laura Tursunkanova from Kazakhstan. In September last year, the painting “Mountain Bow” by Eldar Shibanov with her participation was presented in the program of the Venice Film Festival. Another beautiful actress from Kazakhstan, Samal Eslyamova, starred in the film by Zaka Abdrakhmanova. She is the owner of the “Silver Palm Branch” at the Cannes Film Festival for her role as a Kyrgyz migrant in the film “Aika” by Sergei Dvortsevoi. Most recently, Samal was a member of the jury of the main competition of the MIFF.

Another of the roles was played by St. Petersburg actress Elena Rufanova, whom viewers know from Alexander Sokurov’s films The Russian Ark and Moloch, where she starred as Eva Braun, as well as the TV series Streets of Broken Lights and Lethal Force. The film “Dad died on Saturday” also starred: Amina Orazbay, Kuzma Kotrelev, Sharifbek Zakir, Danagul Temirsultanova, Azat Seitmetov, Alan Khalilov, Alibek Khalilov, Islam Baghlan, Venera Nigmatulina, Timur Bilalov, Shaikul Maysabekova, Zhanay Lebaev.

“Zaka belongs to those authors who treat their characters with great sensitivity and attention, with compassion and irony. She chose a small village in Kazakhstan as the scene of action. This project will not be acutely ethnic and acutely social. A similar story could have happened anywhere in the world. It is universal,” says producer Natalia Smirnova.

“Our film company loves debutants and always supports them. There is an unconditional trend all over the world – documentary film directors are moving into feature films, and often it is they who become the authors of the brightest and most honest projects, – says producer Sergei Selyanov. Zach is no exception. The film is conceived as a rather spectator art mainstream, as a subtle, refined and at the same time democratic cinema.”