Third Bishkek International Film festival

Dates: 11-15 June 2025

Place: Bishkek

FIPRESCI JURY: Elena Rubashevska (Ukraine), Gulnara Abikeyeva (Kazakhstan), Rafael Grillo (Cuba)

 ► FIPRESCI Award: "Mergen", National Film Studio Kyrgyzfilm named after T.Okeyev, CityLab production and Chingiz Narynov, Kyrgyzstan, 2025

"Masterfully combining cultural archetypes and modern cinematic language, this story unfolds through the prism od an unconventional hero that is enriched by a memoriable variety of secondary characters, balancing between real and mystical dimensions"

"Mergen", 2025, director Chingiz Narynov, Kyrgyzstan

Scriptwriter: Aikyz Gaparova

Producers: Kyrgyzfilm studio, CityLab production, Chingiz Narynov

Cast: Omurbek Izrailov, Nazym Mendebairov, Kalipa Tashtanova

Synopsis: In a remote Kyrgyz town where gold mining and poaching rule, an investigator's inherited visions reveal a dark connection between a poacher kingpin, a murdered girl, and a deadly conspiracy to control an abandoned gold mine.

Director Chingiz Narynov and FIPRESCI Jury

Elena Rubashevska:

     "Many more impressions are to follow, but can't help sharing this beautiful surprise from the Bishkek International Film Festival for the Fipresci 100th anniversary: the film critics brand wall The new centennial tastes good, I tell you!"

Elena Rubashevska, Vice-president of FIPRESCI