Sales agent Syndicado has boarded Zhanana Kurmasheva’s feature doc debut “We Live Here,” ahead of its world premiere at CPH:DOX, where it will compete for the DOX:AWARD.
“We Live Here” follows three generations in the desolate Kazakh steppe, once a Soviet nuclear test site, as they confront the place’s haunting legacy.
Between 1949 and 1991, 456 nuclear tests left a legacy of radioactive contamination and suffering. As ecologists map uninhabitable areas, a nearby family struggles with the echoes of the past. Convinced their daughter’s illness stems from radiation, they seek proof while she feels torn between love for her homeland and the sense of looming danger it still holds.
Kurmasheva explains: “My connection to this story is personal. My mother, born near the village of Kainar where nuclear tests left their mark, would warn me: ‘Don’t tell anyone where I’m from. Especially not any future suitors. People think we’re sick.’ This stigma follows the people of Semipalatinsk wherever they go. To this day, locals speak of the shame and fear tied to their origins. The world sees them as damaged, marked by the radiation that still haunts their homeland.”
She adds: “This film is about resilience: of the land and of the people. Their lives intertwine with the steppe in ways that are deeply human. Together, they navigate the aftermath of destruction, clinging to hope and dignity despite the scars they carry.”
Syndicado’s Aleksandar Govedarica comments: “This is a film that lingers long after the credits roll, a powerful and evocative work that challenges viewers to confront the ghosts of history and consider the legacy we leave behind. Zhanana Kurmasheva is an incredible talent and we look forward to being part of her journey.”
Kurmasheva participated in a number of international workshops and training programs, such as the East-West Talent Lab at goEast – Festival of Central and Eastern European Film in 2022. She is the laureate of the 2011 Kulaguer Award for her student documentary “I Am 20 Years Old!” Her short documentary “Zhenya” (2013) was showcased at film festivals in Moscow, New York, Yerevan, Sevastopol and Almaty.
“We Live Here” is produced by Banu Ramazanova. The film was supported by Kazakh Cinema: State Center for Support of National Cinema, the EFM Doc Toolbox program, Eurasia Doc (Doc Monde) Script Development Residency, Alternativa Development Lab, GZDOC (Top 10 Documentary Projects), and Tokyo Docs, where it won Best Pitch.
