Black Red Yellow
The craft of carpet weaving in Kyrgyzstan boasts a long and legendary history, and is an integral part of local life. Turdugul, known as the…
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Kyrgyzstan
Aktan Arym Kubat
Aktan Arym Kubat is an acclaimed writer, director and actor who was born in Kuntuu village, Kyrgyzstan, in 1957, and graduated from Kyrgyz State Art School in 1980.
After working as a set designer and production designer, he made his directorial debut in 1990 with the short documentary The Dog Was Running. His short film as writer/director, The Swing (Selkinchek) (1993) was awarded the Golden Leopard for short film at the Locarno Film Festival, the Grand Prix at the Potsdam Film Festival and a Special Mention of FIPRESCI Jury at the Torino Film Festival. In 1998, he wrote and directed the semi-autobiographical feature film The Adopted Son (Beshkempir) which was awarded the Locarno Film Festival’s Silver Leopard and many other international awards and festival selections including the East of the West Competition at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
His next feature The Chimp (Maimyl) (2001) was selected for Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated by the European Film Academy for the Discovery Award.
The Light Thief (Svet-ake) (2011), in which Aktan Arym Kubat also played the lead role, premiered in Director’s Fortnight in Cannes, won numerous awards and was screened in many festivals such as Locarno, Toronto, Montreal, Doha and others.
His 2017 film Centaur, which he again starred in, premiered in Berlinale’s Panorama section and won CICAE Award, among many other prestigious festival selections and awards. Centaur was nominated for the APSA Cultural Diversity Award under the patronage of UNESCO, which saw Aktan Arym Kubat inducted into the Asia Pacific Screen Academy.
His 2025 feature Black Red Yellow was awarded the Golden Goblet Award for Best Feature Film at the Shanghai International Film Festival 2025.
The Asia Pacific Screen Academy expresses its respect for and acknowledgement of the South East Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of country, including the custodial communities on whose land works are created and celebrated by the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. We acknowledge the continuing connection to land, waters and communities. We also pay our respects to Elders, past and present. We recognise the integral role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and First Nations peoples continue to play in storytelling and celebration spaces.