From 21st to 25th September 2015, the US capital hosted a festival “Week of Uzbek cinema”. The Embassy of our country in the United States organized the event together with the Program on Central Asia and the Institute for European and Eurasian Studies at George Washington University.
The attention of American viewers were presented the films “Dilhiroj” (2000), “Parizod” (2012), and “Father” (2014).
The movies excited great interest among the American audience, composed of representatives of the academic and social circles, cultural, diplomatic and other movie fans.
As part of the week was also organized a series of round tables and seminars for relevant experts and critics with Uzbek filmmakers Shukhrat Abbasov and Ayub Shahobiddinov, during which they discussed issues of formation and development of the national film industry.
The discussions by the American side have witnessed major achievements of the Uzbek cinema over the years of independence, praised serving the country a unique model for the creation of national films, which contributed to the production of a number of feature and documentary films that are considered masterpieces of world cinema. The main factor for success in this area is called a lot of attention paid by the country’s leadership to the development of arts.
In an interview with the news agency “Jahon” Director of the Institute for European and Eurasian Studies Peter Rollberg noted the following:
– Week of Uzbek cinema has provided a unique opportunity for local audiences get acquainted with the masterpieces of your film and to discover new facets of the rich culture of Uzbekistan. When American audiences attending screenings, they were surprised to find that these films reflect the aspects of everyday life that are relevant in all corners of the world.
Marlene Laruel, Program Director for Central Asia at George Washington University:
– Increased interest and warm impression on American audiences illustrated feature films produced in Uzbekistan indicate that the festival has succeeded in moving one of the brightest aspects of Uzbek culture in the United States.
We are ready to further continue cooperation in this direction, which not only helps educate the public directly with cinematography of the republic, but also serves as an important element of public diplomacy and cultural ties between Uzbekistan and the United States.
