KHADAK

Friday, October 12-------In a busy season of Fall premieres, one of the most unique films in the pipeline has to be KHADAK, the feature debut of writers-directors Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth. The film won the prestigious Lion of the Future Award at the Venice Film Festival, following its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. It opens theatrically today at New York's Cinema Village, to be followed by a national release by LifeSize Entertainment.

The film is set in the frozen steppes of Mongolia, where it tells the magical-realist fable of Bagi (Batzul Khayankhyarvaa) , a young nomad shepherd who confronts his destiny to become a shaman. After a plague strikes their herd, Bagi and his family are relocated to a mining town. There, he saves the life of Zolzaya (Tsetsegee Byamba,) a beautiful performer/coal thief. When Bagi discovers that the plague was a government lie fabricated to eradicate nomadic life, he and Zolzaya incite a revolution. Bagi's shaman powers help rally his people, but will they ever be able to return to their former lives?
 
Documentarian Peter Brosens is known for his internationally acclaimed Mongolia trilogy (CITY OF THE STEPPES, STATE OF DOGS, and POETS OF MONGOLIA), which screened at over 100 festivals including Venice and Toronto. Also trained in documentary filmmaking, Jessica Woodworth’s first film, URGA SONG, was shot in Mongolia. It was followed by Morocco-shot THE VIRGIN DIARIES, which was nominated for the FIPRESCI Award by the International Documentary Film Association.  KHADAK is their first feature film. Audiences interested in taking a physical and psychological journey to a world entirely different from their own should rush out and catch this rare gem of a film.

Sandy Mandelberger, Coming Attractions Editor