Yermek Bektasuly Shinarbayev, a renowned film director of Soviet and Kazakh origin, was born on January 24, 1953, in Alma-Ata. Shinarbaev's work is often associated with the Kazakh New Wave, a movement that sought to revitalize the country's film industry. He is the only Kazakh director to have won the prestigious Golden Leopard award at the Locarno Film Festival, which he received for his film "The Place on a Grey Tricorne" in 1993.
Shinarbaev's most notable collaborations were with the Korean-Russian writer Anatoli Kim, with whom he worked on three films. Their partnership resulted in some of Shinarbaev's most critically acclaimed works, including "Revenge" (1990),which premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival. Additionally, "Revenge" won the grand prize at the Sochi Open Russian Film Festival in 1990, further solidifying Shinarbaev's reputation as a talented and accomplished film director.
