The Golden Age of Kazakh Animation

The Golden Age of Kazakh Animation 

      This research paper is an analysis on the golden era of animation in a great independent country located at the centre of Asia, Kazakhstan. My homeland has a national studio for animation and cinema “Kazakh film” in Almaty City. From 1970s to 1980s Kazakh animation lived its golden decade. More than 130 cartoons, short animated stories and feature animations were created, and many of them were part of golden fund of Kazakh animation. These fruitful years brought many new talents and innovations in this field, but from 1990s the economic crisis in post-Soviet Union countries destroyed animation industry. The essay’s purpose is to analyze the most popular animations created in Kazakhfilm by applying acquired knowledge from the course. It goes deep into genres, styles, and used techniques of animations by providing evidences from scholar resources. Many works that have an aesthetic value are still lying unexplored by our generation. The world has a very little knowledge about them, so the time to introduce forgotten culture has come.

      A land that was home for many singers, poets, composers and writers of the steppe, has given a birth to animation considerably late than any other parts. It is due to Russian influence Amen Khaidarov took courage to create first Kazakh animation in 1967 in studio of Almaty City, “Kazakhfilm”. I find a strange, yet interesting parallelism in Amen Khaidarov’s personality and Normen McLaren’s biographical parts related to the work in National Film Board. They have a lot in common. Both of them could not resist temptation to express themselves in animation for the first time in governmental studio. Both of them started everything from zero in this field, and eventually, after time-consuming and challenging tasks they deserved to be remembered for many generations. The first child of Kazakh animation was not created from vacuum. There is a solid fundament for the school of animators from every single part of USSR: “Soyuzmultfilm” acquired a prestigious status in animation art; Georgian, Ukrainian, Armenian studios independently built up their own animation different from their cinematography.

      Before the 60s historical, social and economical factors influenced the latency in development of cinema. However, many years of suffer and pain did not kill the drawings unique to Kazakh style, which later on would impact Amen and his team of young and talented entrepreneurs of art. Indeed, all the crew started from the scratch.  Russian animators helped with the advice and shared their experience. However, those times were extremely hard, Amen had the director, the script writer, the manager of the crew, plus supporter as Tamara Mendeshova, the student of first Kazakh animator, witnessed in those times of working in Kazakhfilm. (Mendeshova Tamara 2005, 102-105)

      Animation is like a phenomenal language “Esperanto”, animation is a tool to connect silently, but effectively to a person, no matter of age, race or sex. Consequently, animation is international, but it is spiced up with folklore of each country. Kazakh animation has different flavours, and all based on the culture. For example, the very first child of national studio, “Why do Swallows have Forked Tails” is compared to traditional Kazakh ornaments by Baurzhan Nugerbekov. In his book “When do animations become alive?” the professor of film studies and acclaimed critic says following: "The drawings and colours of the film are clear continuations of the smooth, flat designs of the Kazakh ornamental arts; of the clear and colourful compositions on artistic felts”.  The reason for this analogy could be that Kazakh ornaments are symmetrical, also magical, in a sense that they have certain meanings. The style of the animation is also symmetrical, since the storyline is smooth and balanced. The bad and good have equal chances to occur. This style is the key to the audience: for instance, at the beginning of the movie, before a sleeping child was bitten by a mosquito, red colour of pictures of the rug becomes more intensive and dark, the message is passed to us. Light colours and more primitive structures of images on the background indicate innocence and happiness. This detailed analysis of Mr. Nurgerbekov gives a balanced and academic appraisal to the masterpiece. (Nogerbekov 1984) The film was warmly received both by audiences and by professional masters of Soviet animation. It was accepted to a number of domestic and international film festivals, winning a prize at the 1968 “All-Union Film Festival” and the bronze medal in the children's films category at the 1974 “New York Animation Film Festival”. This success was especially noteworthy because the artistic group which worked on the film were not experienced in animation, being recent graduates of the Almaty Art College.

      After successful debut in animation films, Amen Khaidarov learned a lot from past mistakes and started working on a new project “Aksak Kulan” with an inspiration gotten from critics and the public. “Aksak Kulan” is a treasure for Kazakh Nation. Well, the synopsis of “Aksak Kulan”, whose English translation is “Lame wild horse”, is shortly about a composer of Nomadic steppe who becomes a victim of Mongolian Khan. The musician tries to save a life of a sacred animal, wild horse, by interrupting the hunting of Khan’s beloved son. Unfortunately, at the end the animal is killed, whereas the murderer is cursed by the fate of murder. Poor and innocent musician pays for the death with his instrument, which will become a famous two-stringed national instrument of Kazakhstan in the future. The animation is based on the ancient legend.  It is intriguing part is mostly the abstraction used at the beginning that sets a scene for happy and peaceful village in the middle of the Nomads land. Nurgisa Tlendiyev, the most popular composer of that time did a wonderful job at playing the music that accompanies our heroes all the time throughout the film. Baurzhan Nogerbekov, the professor of academy of Art after Zhurgenov in Almaty believes that the second work of Amen is not the best he could do to contribute to the legend. He criticizes the animator for not being creative: firstly, all characters at enemy’s part are the simple copy-pastes from scene to scene; secondly, the long story is compressed, since the script is extremely different from its literature interpretation. Let me quote Pr.Norbekov “Authors were limited to external illustrative retelling of the story, whereas diverse folklore, musical and literary versions of the legend (for example, a poem “Aksak-kulan” by Halizhan Bekhozhin) gave the richest material for more courageous, original and poetically raised interpretation of a theme and a legend plot”. (Nogerbekov 1984) However, the media and the mainstream reacted conversely, since they were excited by the different approach Mr.Khaidarov took to a popular story. On the eighth competition of cinematographers of the Republics of Central Asia and Kazakhstan film “Aksak-kulan” has been noted by the diploma as the best animated film. Three generations were grown up from Amen’s animation, which is now valued as national pearl. Although animators initially thought to make a sequel, the director and author did not see any practical reason to work on old material. In one of the interviews, Amen revealed his conception: “Folklore has everything – both history and culture, and philosophy, both the life, and traditions. The folklore is the richest material for creativity. Our Kazakh earth is rich of folklore, the same as with entire elements of Mendeleyev’s table.”

      The hand-drawn animation technology was already mastered after successful films at “Kazakhfilm” studio. With the advent of new members into the team, there was an interest in development of other techniques, already existing in the world of animation. It was a natural process, since “short circuit” in one technology could lead to a tired old cliché.

      Young director Gani Kistauov decided to pioneer in puppet animation. Because the scenario for his cartoon has been addressed the youngest spectators, it was essentially important to catch their attention. Probably, this moment has defined a choice of the technology: puppetry is psychologically closer to small children, rather than drawings. An easy story created on motives of the Kazakh national fairy tales, explained simple and eternal truth about the good and bad. This type of technology cardinally differs from hand-drawn animation. In creating the drawn images, there exists multi-leveled set of actions which simplifies graphic structure and the labour of an art director. In puppet animations, the artist is within the organizing environments, and intimacy between a director and puppets creates a unique creative atmosphere. There is a trade- off: on one hand, you have less time-consuming process of drawn animation, but monotonous product, on the other, you have complete independence and creativity in a long and challenging method, as puppet animation.

      The first puppet animation in Kazakh cartoon studio was “The Bear and the Hare” directed by Gani Kistauov in 1968. This period was an open journey for new technologies. Heroes of the picture: a rough, self-confident Bear, harmless Hare, exotic and dexterous bees. The bear - the owner of wood - sings a song without words destroys all on the way, does it fervently, cheerfully, and makes a comic impression. Our hero draws the attention of the spectator until, actually, and the main conflict occurs – the struggle of small Hare and amicable bees against the malicious bear. According to Nogerbekov authors have taken a great step in animated motions. External dynamics of actions from which they consulted great graphics appeals to everyone at first, but the temp brightly declared in the beginning, starts to fall down in the middle, because of disregarded dramatic art. The debutants, who do not have experience of the dramaturgy, did not manage to update dependence of our animation on national fairy tales and did not invent fascinating and original situations. (Nogerbekov 1984)

      “Hodzha Nasyr’s adventures” (1971) is a third Khaidarov’s work, but with a different plot and methodology. The figurative world of animated tapes of Amena Khaidarov is clearly contrasted, without semitones. It is divided on only white and black – bad or good, as in ancient national fairy tales. Even when the artist works with an image of the joker and impudent fellow Hodzha Nasyr that assumes creation of an easy, cheerful comic cartoon film, Amen Hajdarov remains to true artist's aspirations. He starts to work with a philosophical parable, succinct story that illustrates a moral lesson. Such genre demands a well-thought construction of a plot and concise action development. Films of such direction are accompanied with expressive treatments, comical convention of animation characters, and laconic stylistic expressiveness of the forms. In this cartoon, authors have managed to overcome the narration which was taking place in the previous works. Also they focused not on a drama or graphics, but on figurative modelling of thought, in other words, abstraction-like atmosphere. At first, Hodzha Nasyr remained in steppe without a roof over the head, so he accepts to build a stone yurta. When he listens to authoritative opinions of neighbours, he tries several architectural styles of the West and the East, constructing something silly at the end. Amen’s debut in this difficult genre of modern animation turned to success. The animation had been nominated for “a new wave in cinema” on fifth All-Union film festival in Tbilisi. It was also presented at first International Zagreb Festival of Animation. The technique used in third work is using silhouettes cut out from a cardboard. His later works include comedies like “The little Tail” (1969), and his work on environmental issues “Sunlight spot” (1975).

      Nogerbekov states that there were certain positive shifts in Gani Kistauov’s works in third cartoon film "The Dandelion Boy". He further believes that as the result of animator’s concentration and professionalism, there are new lyrical intonations that begun to sound in Gani’s cartoons. (Nogerbekov 1984) Perhaps, for the first time on our puppet screen there was “smooth rhythm of action, a contemplate, quiet manner of a narration, iridescent, warm lyricism in drawn landscapes, portrait characteristics of heroes and their mutual relations”. While watching a fantastic travel of the Boy-dandelion, one can notice that the director gives a great attention to static compositions, whereas the absence of dynamic actions is used to show internal emotional conditions of characters. In these episodes the camera becomes “lyrical”, as if it looks at the world though eyes of the Boy-dandelion. It was a fresh and unusual view for the Kazakh animation.

      “The Transformation” (1969) is an attempt to create of an anti-war film. It is based on motives of a fairy tale of Hungarian writer E.Heltai. The parable genre might have involved authors of a film of Anatoly Volkov and Viktor Tchhugunova with an idea to express actual thought on necessity of a fight for peace. The story has been a little simplified: the small flea who was the main cause of the great fight, as a result of a metamorphosis turns into an abstract image of an elephant. They refused to show the story in traditional narrative way. The image of the Flea is an evil which gradually expands and gets out of hand. Authors perfectly symbolized everything by transforming the Flea into the huge, ominous pseudoscientific animal, the elephant in metal covers. This image became more exact and impressing symbol of senseless war. The semantic role in the scenario is assigned to a wise man. That is why it appears unexpected and sharply effective that all events were only imaginations of the aged man. He has understood in time, what danger this Flea may bring. Having destroyed it, the man has not allowed the evil to expand to the sizes of great disaster. On the one hand, it represented possibility to simulate all processes for growth of bad; on the other hand, it allowed authors to remain in genre of the East parable, which is having fantastic and allegorical character. Also modern style of narration has strengthened humanistic idea of the cartoon about necessity to fight against danger in all of its forms. One can divide the dramaturgy into two parts. First one is the description the history the Flea, its harmlessness in humorous way: the Flea wanders from one hero to another, generating possible comic situation. At the same time it is some kind of entrance for the basic idea in the second part. The script is developed by the principle of an untwisted spiral. One small misunderstanding is connected with occurrence of Flea. It leads to a conflict between the cameleer and the husband of the young woman, coming to an end with severe murder. The death is only the first link to a bloody chain of crimes which involves numerous people. At the end of the second part, whole cities of that area fight against each other. As a whole a film-debut “Transformation”, the diploma work of a student, Viktor Tchugunov, is a pleasant phenomenon. Young artists experimented with a new method for our animation, and they worked on a challenging genre. “Transformation” has a great art-aesthetic value, because their project is experimental, original and, indeed, successful. They have shown real possibility and objective necessity to create independent animation in Kazakhstan. (Nogerbekov 1984)

      The debut of the director of Tamara Mendesheva, "the Silk Brush", is made in the traditional way of narrating a national fairy tale by a slow rate of shots. She was so charmed by the unlimited expressive possibilities of a new art that she decided to devote herself to this creative life of animation. In cartoon, only the Shaman has some faces representing anger, surprise, and pleasure and so on. The young hunter and girl Torko Chachak (the Silk Brush) does not change her mimics throughout all cartoon. However, this circumstance does not prevent the story to be emotionally touching. The story line and intonations help spectators to watch actively the poetical world of the cartoon. "Silk Brush" is created as the result of careful research for a picturesque direction of modern animation. Tamara says following about her work in one of her articles: “The subjects almost all my films are connected with Altay, my native land. Magnanimous and generous heart of Kazakh people have given me a chance to speak to the whole from the screen, and today, using the given possibility, I wish to express hot gratitude to everybody”. (Mendeshova Tamara 2005, 102-105) In their article “The road worth of a life…” , Gulmira Sadykova, the cinema director at Kazakhfilm  and professor of Film Studies at Kazakh National Fine Arts Academy, Gimurat Bekeshev report that Tamara Mendosheva’s  focus on Altaic folklore not only have extended the breadth of national animation but also brought the invaluable contribution to development of the Altay national culture. (Altay is Turkic region under Russian Federation)

      The situation of Kazakh animation today is extremely different from the golden period: there are many independent studios, including "Kazahmultfilm" which are engaged in manufacture of animation production, but more often the results of their work do not reach the target.  All of television channels prefer to show low-standard cartoon series. Our TV is not capable to order animation due to the price. According to Russian animator Alexander Tatarskij, on all channels every minute of time costs about 1000 dollars, and cartoon film manufacturing costs a minimum of 3 thousand per minute.

      There is one approach from conservative circle of animators. They believe that those who form the radio policy on TV do not understand that such video production, as American films accompanied with pop-corn, does not carry anything neither for mind, nor for feelings of the small children. Meanwhile, modern professional Russian, French or Canadian animation prospers at the expense of stable cooperation with large national broadcasting companies. We can see an example of strong governmental support and the productions of successful industry at the end. What about the government of Kazakhstan? Why there are no DVDs with a national label? Certainly, "Kazahfilm" carried out the action to launch a collection of the Kazakh animation, but these only few could watch these cartoon films. Besides, children who got used to the American and Japanese animation practically do not perceive the Soviet animation stylistics and culture. One illustration of this idea is the director, Kairgali Kasymov who is about to finish his animation film “Shyrak”, but instead of being happy he is worried  about his child that might not be appreciated by public since there is no guarantee that TV demands national animation. His cartoon is a second part of an animated series, "Kuyrshyk" created by Kairgali Kasymov. It is about a small and restless hero to whom everything in a life is interesting. Its purpose on the screen is to be a source for children on the Kazakh language. However, it began "to appear" as a doom cartoon isolated only in language, so Kairgali decides to make changes and create a feature film of a great quality. There was a dilemma: to do a work of art which will become history of animation, or to do a commercial product which should make profit and stop existence eventually. There are some examples when those films considered as experimental or avant-garde, become popular and commercially successful; for sure, it is not simple to understand and then to predict. He was sure the animation could bring the success of this type: both international recognition for art and commercial success in Kazakhstan, if only he could watch the final result on TV. (Afonin Georgiy 2008)

      The second, very different approach is hold by most of private studios. After all, cartoons participate in every possible tender as goods or services. Therefore, studios should find means to manufacture films independently. Sponsors and the non-governmental organizations are often helpful. The world is now practical, and if you cannot convince that your cartoon film will yield any result, educational or other, it will turn out nothing. Naturally, that is the main reason for death of golden age after 90s. The USSR was destroyed; studios that had stable governmental budget were not ready to compete against the laws of free market. Today, any local or republican TV channel demands qualitative and cheap animations since the broadcasting time costs much. It is much more favourable to channels to buy the American cartoon film of high quality and to fill with it a broadcasting time. Private studios suffer from the lack of dramatic art in their animation. There are modern technologies, lots of possibilities, stable funding from sponsors, but there are no bases of construction of product. Drawing is not the key, but dramatic art laws to tell the story. A few of independent studios having these problems are “Zhebe” in Chymkent City, a private studio of Maksut Zharimbetov, “Animaster” and Almaty animation studio “Azia Animation”. (Irina Sokolova 2008)

      There are several solutions to solve these problems. First, it is necessary to rethink the status of animation film industry. Traditionally, in Kazakhstan animation was considered to be one of many shops of films in Kazakhfilm studio. All over the world animation was included into all spheres not only arts, but it was also considered as technological, scientific, experimental tool to express an ideology. Therefore, it is a separate structure. Secondly, analyze all earlier domestically created animation films in order to compare opinions of all experts in the field. In the third, following from the second idea, to develop the conceptual plan for development and constructions animation studios. It is necessary to develop vertical structure of manufacture. What does it mean? It involves interaction of ethnographers, historians, teachers, psychologists, economists that count up the necessary budget, and to develop a business plan. Consequently, animators will address their ready projects to authorities. When animators can prove the necessity of their actions as priority in ideological structure at present then it is possible to hope that the state will accept their request on a legislative basis. If animators, as professionals do not translate a cultural heritage for rising generation on digital carriers, there will be no one left to share and appreciate our long history and interesting culture. We have already lost a generation of 90s, due to the crisis in post Soviet Union republics. From all before the created animation films, our children know at most 2-3 cartoon films. Despite this fact, more than 113 animation films have not lost the urgency and the importance until now, because devoted people brought them up in the best traditions.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Reference

1. Afonin Georgiy. 2008. The kindest hero. Izvestiya Kazakhstan http://www.izvetia.kz/news/php?date=12-12-08&number=9 (accessed 10/03/2009).

2.  Bendazzi Giannalberto. 1994. Cartoons: One Hundred Years of Cinema Animation

3. Irina Sokolova. 2008. "Maksut zharimbetov: Kazakh animation does not have a dramatic art". Fergana.ru., http://www.ferghana.ru/article.php?id=5653 (accessed 09/03/2009).

4. Mendeshova Tamara. 2005. "Original culture of kazakhstan". Ruh-Miras., http://www.nlrk.kz/upload/files/rm_4_17.pdf (accessed 03/09/2009).

5.  Nogerbekov, B. R. 1984. "When the tales become alive: Animation in kazakhstan". Almaty: Oner. 
6.  Sadykova G., Bekishev G. 2005 "Doroga cenoyu v Zhizn"/"The road in value of life"

7.   www.animator.ru  A Russian animations movies database (accessed 03/12/2009)
8. www.youtube.com Video database used to retrieve video of modern Kazakhstan (accessed 03/12/2009)
9. www.kaztube.kz  official videoportal of Republic of Kazakhstan (accessed 03/20/2009)
10. www.kiwi.kz Video database of Kazakh videos (accessed 03/20/2009)