Rashid Nugmanov: The legendary director who changed Kazakh cinema

Rashid Nugmanov - an outstanding film director, screenwriter and producer from Russia and Kazakhstan, best known as a film director "Needle".

Biography

Rashid Musaevich Nugmanov born in Almaty. In 1977, he completed his architectural education at the Kazan Polytechnic Institute. Ten years later, he expanded his education by graduating from the directing department of VGIK under the guidance of Sergei Solovyov.

From 1989 to 1992, he headed the Republican Union of Cinematographers, having a significant impact on the cinematic landscape.

In 1993, Rashid emigrated, but eventually returned to his native Kazakhstan. There he became deeply involved in politics and joined a public association "Democratic choice of Kazakhstan". Since 2002, Nugmanov has played a decisive role as the DCK's representative on international affairs.

Beginning of a screenwriter's career

From his youth, Rashid was passionate about rock and roll under the influence of his brother Murad. First he went to Brod Street in Almaty, a popular place where fashionable young people had gathered since the early 60s. By 1983, he was fascinated by the albums of Viktor Tsoi «45» и "Chief of Kamchatka".

In 1985, the aspiring director went to Leningrad in search of Viktor Tsoi, offering roles in his new works "King Broda" и "Ya-ha!" Short film "Ya-ha!" demonstrated Nugmanov's versatility by taking on the roles of director, screenwriter, producer, artist and editor. Shot over two weeks in 1986, the film was originally just a course work for cameraman Alexei Mikhailov, but it vividly captured the essence of the Soviet underground.

First serious work

Nugmanov’s first full-length debut took place in 1987, when he was a third-year student at VGIK, heading the direction "Needles" on "Kazakhfilm". Faced with a tight budget and deadline, he insisted on creative freedom, including changing the script and casting rock musicians Viktor Tsoi and Pyotr Mamonov, as well as friends. The film, peppered with references to great filmmakers such as Godard, unexpectedly took off at the box office in 1989, making Tsoi the magazine's best actor of the year. "Soviet Screen".

"Needle" got into the Park City American Independent Film Festival, directed by Robert Redford, and sold out a week before the screening. After Tsoi’s death, Nugmanov intended to continue cooperation with such projects as "Children of the Sun" for "Kino", which after Tsoi's death will turn into "Wild East". This film combined various cinematic styles and themes, drawing comparisons to The Magnificent Seven and "Mad Max".

But "Wild East""did not find much resonance within the country, and amid the decline of the Russian film industry after 1991, Nugmanov abandoned film production. He later moved to France, immersing himself in studying global filmmaking and finance, as well as working on American projects including "Citadel of Death" и "Spirit Escape".

Scripts from English studios

In addition, Nugmanov wrote four English scripts: "Russian swing", "Golden Idol", "Innervision" и "Spell". He also initiated the creation of an animated series at his Almaty studio "Echo of Centuries", inspired by Turkic myths.

In 2010, Nugmanov reimagined his most famous film "A needle. Remix». A restored version of the 1988 original was re-released in 2019, bringing its magic back to modern audiences.

List of filmographies of Rashid Nugmanov

Filmography of the director:

1. Needle (1988)
2. Wild Wild East (1993)
3. Moscow Says (1993)

Filmography of the screenwriter:

1. Needle (1988) — Rashid Nugmanov was one of the co-authors of the script.
2. Wild Wild East (1993) — Nugmanov also took part in writing the script for this film.