Duration: 26:48
Language: Kazakh, Russian
Year: 2025
English subtitles: Yes
Shooting Format: Digital, Raw,
ARRI ALEXA Mini
Aspect Ratio: 3:2
Film Color: Color
First-time Filmmaker: No
A 15-year-old Zarina wants to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy. However, she ends up caught in a vicious cycle that is more difficult to escape than she thought.
Zarina, a 15-year-old schoolgirl, decides to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy before anyone finds out. In secret, she searches for a solution - swallowing pills, whispering plans to her best friend Karina, hiding her fear from parents who would never understand. But every attempt only pulls her deeper into a vicious cycle of shame and silence. Over the course of a few days, Zarina’s childhood unravels as she faces isolation, humiliation, and the weight of decisions far beyond her age. What seemed like a way out becomes a trap she cannot easily escape.
Special Mention - The Best Actress (Yenlik Kozyke) at the IYFF UMUT (March, 2026)
Nominee - The Light of Asia at the Jogja NETPAC Asian Film Festival (December, 2025)
Official Selection at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (May, 2026)
Camila Sagyntkan is a director and producer from Almaty, Kazakhstan. She holds a law degree, a background that sharpened her perspective on justice, responsibility, and human stories before she turned to filmmaking. She has been working in the film industry for seven years, with experience in more than a hundred projects as a 1AD, producer, and script supervisor.
Camila is a resident of the BaseCamp ’25 at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland, a participant of the CAPITÃO Artist Residency in Portugal, the Qyzqaras Critic Lab ’25 in Kazakhstan, and the Script LAB CA ’25 in Kyrgyzstan.
She is currently promoting her second short film, “What Have You Done, Zarina?”; developing her third short film, “Brat Summer,” which was selected among the top ten projects of the Asian Short Film Fund; writing her feature-length film, “My Sea, My Waves”; and working on various other projects.
Duration: 16:31
Language: Kazakh, Russian
Year: 2023
English subtitles: Yes
Shooting Format: Digital, Raw,
RED 8K, Cooke S4
Aspect Ratio: 4:3 + 16:9
Film Color: Color
First-time Filmmaker: Yes
After the death of his love, a middle-aged man tries to find a new sense of life against all changes in the country.
Award for Best Short Film at the Eurasian Creative Guild Film Festival (2024)
Renata Dublicka-Woźniak Award for Most Positive Character at the Euroshorts (2023)
Award for Best Short Film at the AISFF (2023)
Award for Best Editing at the Baiqonyr IFF (2023)
Official Selection at the Cleveland IFF (2024), Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (2024), Courts d'un soir (2024), Bengaluru IFF (2024), Festival Cortos en Grande (2024), goEast 2024 (2024), Grenzland-Filmtage (2024), Samizdat Eastern European Film Festival (2024), IFF of the CIS countries, Baltic, and Georgia (2024), 19th IAWRT Asian Women's Film Festival (2024), MIFF (2024), PRVI KADAR-INTERNATIONAL FF (2023), Baku ISFF (2023), 62nd Golden Knight Malta ISFF & more
This directorial and screenwriting debut, “Happy Independence Day”, was shortlisted for the Sundance Institute Ignite x Adobe program in 2023, which marked the continuation of Camila Sagyntkan's career as a director and writer. The film received several awards and was screened at international festivals, including the Cleveland International Film Festival, the Courts d’un soir, the Go East Film Festival, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, and others. In 2025, it was released online through Short of the Week.
Press and links:
Interview for Harper's Bazaar Kazakhstan
Variety - Triumph at Torino Film Festival
Shortoftheweek - Happy Independence Day by Camila Sagyntkan
The Hypatia Award for Creativity at the Alexandria Short Film Festival
Award for Best Short Film at the AISFF
Renata Dublicka-Woźniak Award for Most Positive Character at the Euroshorts
Award for Best Editing at the Baiqonyr IFF
Interview for the Tokyo International Short Film Festival
Kazakh Movie Wins at Eurasian Creative Guild Film Festival
Kazakh film «Happy Independence Day» gains international recognition
MIFF to dedicate a segment featuring movies from women filmmakers
18th edition of MIFF to celebrate female directors with a special segment
camilasagyntkan@gmail.com
