The jury at the 10th YARHA international cinema week in the capital of Cameroon, Yaounde, awarded Kairat Kemalov the Best Actor (Prix d'Interpretation Masculine) for his role in Lonely Yurt. The Kazakh actor shared the award with Zakaria Inan, who played a leading role in the Moroccan-French feature Mica, QazMonitor reports.
Lonely Yurt is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Smagul Yelubay. Based on a real story, it recounts the tale of a village family in Soviet Kazakhstan during the famine of the 1930s. Kemalov plays the role of Pakhraddin bi, a judge, whose village is forced to migrate to the distant city of Qonirat to ensure their survival.
Established in 2013, the YARHA film festival is an international week where filmmakers from around the world present their debut works (1st and 2nd feature films) to Cameroonian audience. Since its inception, the festival has emphasized raising awareness and empowering women in the film industry. Each edition provides meetings, conferences, debates, and round-table discussions for women filmmakers from Central Africa.
