Kazakh cinema pioneer Abdolla Karsakbayev's 100th anniversary marked in Istanbul with a screening of “My Name Is Koja”

The 100th birth anniversary of director Abdolla Karsakbayev, one of the founders of Kazakh cinema, was marked in Istanbul during the 6th Korkut Ata Turkic World Film Festival and the 1st International Korkut Ata Cinema Symposium, held in partnership with TURKSOY. Karsakbayev's films brought the life, culture and values of the Kazakh people to the screen and reached audiences abroad.

TURKSOY Secretary General Sultan Raev said that art rooted in its own culture can speak to all of humanity. Adilet Omarov, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Kazakhstan's National Centre for the Support of Cinema, and Nadira Saduova, press spokesperson of the Kazakhfilm National Film Studio, also spoke. Karsakbayev's “My Name Is Koja”, a classic of Kazakh cinema about childhood, friendship, honesty and human relationships, was screened, followed by a talk with Saduova about its production.

The centenary is included in UNESCO's calendar of anniversaries. TURKSOY has also decided to mark it across the Turkic world in order to introduce his work to new generations.