Aizhan Kassymbek

A director from Kazakhstan (b. 1990) Aizhan Kassymbek has broken gender barriers as a successful filmmaker in her country. Known for working with predominantly female crews and advocating for different representations of women in Kazakh cinema, she speaks openly about the sexism she has faced within her profession. These experiences ultimately become a creative driving force for her films, such as Madina (2023), her most recent feature film, which follows her first, Fire (2021). Kassymbek attended the Asian Film Academy’s film program in Busan, South Korea, and premiered her first short film, Air, in 2018. That same year, she released another short, this time featuring the element Water, which won the Grand Prix at the Hanoi Film Festival. It’s with Madina that the director will be at LEFFEST, attending the screening of the film as part of the Central Asian Cinema cycle.