Premieres: First Look: Tulpan
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Premieres: First Look: Tulpan

“Astonishing . . . a spectacular, unclassifiable immersion in the daily life of nomad sheepherders working the awesome emptiness of the Kazakh steppe.” —Village Voice

In his engaging first feature set on the remote Hunger Steppe of southern Kazakhstan, writer-director Dvortsevoy creates a charming tale of unrequited love that the New York Film Festival calls “as comic as it is awe-inspiring.” Returning home after serving time in the Russian naval service, sweet but hapless Asa is desperate to arrange a marriage with the only available female in the village. His future depends on his marital status, as he won’t be entrusted with a herd until he has a wife. Winner of the Un Certain Regard Award at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. 2008, 35mm, in Kazakh and Russian with English subtitles, 100 minutes.