The Life of a Young Accordion Player

(Kozymnin karasy)

by Satybaldy Narymbetov

Kazakhstan

Director: Satybaldy Narymbetov

Script: I. Izmagambetova, S. Narymbetov

Cineamtographer: Khasan Kydraliev

Editing: Svetlana Hyarova

Sound: Igor Pozdenko

Art Director: R. Abdrachev

Cast: Daulet Taniev, Petia Halitovitch, B. Alpeisov, Akan Sataev

Production: Kazakhfilm

Year: 1994

35 mm, Colour and B & W, 90 min, 
OV With French Subtitles

With kind support of Kazakhfilm

Eksen, a boy about ten years with a round face and sharp eyes, is fond of life and curious about everything. During the years following the Second World War, he discovers the world in his small mining village in southern Kazakhstan; it is a Soviet quite ordinary small town in a small valley with its grocer, its theme park with funny statues, its bighearted whore, it NKVD leader, its idiot dreaming of America, its Sunday night dance, its inner circuit of radio broadcasting words from the Party…and loving declarations from the head of police, and its gang of Eksen’s friends, cheeky little rascals on the lookout for any plot by the adults, those odd blokes taking themselves so seriously!

At the rhythm of the accordion Eksen is so fond of playing, the gang meets and quarrels, joyfully gathers and laughs, and separates to allow each of them dry their tears.

For this black and white film with colour sequences, a certain Rustem Abdrashev worked as set designer.