ABOUT THE FILM
LOGLINE
A debt-ridden college teacher with a large family stumbles upon a bag of money hidden by corrupt officials. Faced with the biggest choice of his life, will he seize this chance at financial freedom, or will fear and conscience stop him from crossing a moral line?
SYNOPSIS
Gabit (52), a college physics teacher, has five children. This morning, he wakes up early, as usual. While the city is still asleep, he looks out of his window and sees someone hiding a mysterious bag beneath the snow in the deserted winter landscape.
Overcome with excitement and curiosity, Gabit takes a risk for the first time in his life: he retrieves the bag, full of money, and hides it in the trunk of his old car…
TECHNICAL INFORMATION
- ENGLISH TITLE
- In Winter
- KAZAKH TITLE
- Qysta
- GENRE
- Family / Child, Comedy / Satire
- DURATION
- 85 min
- PRODUCTION
- Kazakhstan, XAIKU Production
- LANGUAGE
- Kazakh
- SUBTITLES
- Korean, English
- SHOOTING FORMAT
- 2K
- EXHIBITION FORMAT
- 2K, DCP
- RATIO
- 16:9 Color
- SOUND
- 5.1
WORLD PREMIERE
A WINDOW ON
ASIAN CINEMA
“Qysta” will have its world premiere in “A Window on Asian Cinema”, one of the main sections of the 31st Busan International Film Festival 2026 (South Korea), dedicated to contemporary Asian cinema.
In 2019, Yerlan Nurmukhambetov’s “The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time” was the opening film of the 24th Busan International Film Festival. The opening ceremony took place at the Busan Cinema Center’s outdoor theater, which seats 5,000 spectators.
The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) is one of Asia’s leading international film festivals, held in South Korea since 1996. Over the years, its “A Window on Asian Cinema” section has featured films by directors such as Takeshi Kitano, Wong Kar-wai, Abbas Kiarostami and Asghar Farhadi.
SEE BUSAN SCREENINGS →DIRECTORS
Yerlan Nurmukhambetov
DIRECTOR · SCREENWRITER · LEAD ACTOR
Yerlan Nurmukhambetov is a Kazakh director and screenwriter, and a senior lecturer at the Kazakh National University of Arts. He graduated from the T. Zhurgenov Kazakh National Academy of Arts with a degree in screenwriting and earned a master’s degree in directing. He directed “Zhangak Tal,” “Kanysh” and “The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time,” which have screened and won awards at international film festivals, including the Busan International Film Festival. He has been teaching since 2008 and has also served on international film festival juries.
FILMOGRAPHY
ZHANGAK TAL / THE WALNUT TREE
- Grand Prix in the New Currents section at the 2015 Busan International Film Festival (South Korea)
- Special Jury Prize and Critics’ Prize at the 22nd Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema (France)
- Best Asian Film Award at the Fajr International Film Festival (Iran)
- Audience Award at the Innsbruck International Film Festival (Austria)
THE HORSE THIEVES. ROADS OF TIME
- Opening Film at the 2019 Busan International Film Festival (South Korea)
- Special Screening at the 2019 Tokyo International Film Festival
- European Premiere at the Göteborg Film Festival
- Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography Awards at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA)
QANYSH
- Best Film at “Literature in Cinema” in Buenos Aires, Argentina (2022)
- Best Asian Feature Film and Best Environmental/Nature Feature Film at the Atvikvaruni International Film Festival, India (2023)
LITTLE SAMURAI
- Special Award for Contribution to Cinema at the 2nd Bishkek International Film Festival (2024)
Nursultan Nuskabekov
DIRECTOR · SCREENWRITER
Nursultan Nuskabekov is a Kazakh director and screenwriter who graduated from the Kazakh National University of Arts with a degree in fiction film directing. He has worked in film and television since 2015 as a director, screenwriter and editor. He has directed television series for Qazaqstan, Khabar and Astana TV, as well as documentary and fiction projects. His documentary “Qasapshynyn Bir Kuni” received awards at the Baiqonyr International Film Festival and the Memleket Maqtanyshy competition.
“Qysta” is his debut feature film.
IN THEIR OWN WORDSREAD THE TEAM’S STATEMENTS→CAST
STARRING
Yerlan Nurmukhambetov · Zhanar Shokpanova
CREW
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Bauyrzhan Nurkeyev
PRODUCERS
Julia Kim · Sanurzhan Suleimen
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Zhumakyz Kaliyeva · Anel Donenbay
CREATIVE PRODUCERS
Talgat Taishanov · Yerlan Nurmukhambetov
CAMERA AND LIGHTING EQUIPMENT
CNS Roman Repchenko · Abu-Shakhman Serik
SOUND EQUIPMENT
Sound Myrza · Nikita Artyukhov
DIRECTORS
Nursultan Nuskabekov · Yerlan Nurmukhambetov
SCREENWRITERS
Yerlan Nurmukhambetov · Nursultan Nuskabekov · with Dilnaz Basarova
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Doskhan Uakhitov
PRODUCTION DESIGNER
Marat Imanbergen
COSTUME DESIGNER
Zhanna Abdiker
COMPOSER
Aigerim Makibayeva
MAKEUP ARTISTS
Kseniya Maksimyuk · Aruzhan Dosymova
FIRST ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Abai Syzdykov
PRESS RESOURCES
CONTACTS