‘Rebirth Island’: Cold War Spy Thriller From ‘Balaban’ Director Wraps Production, Heads To EFM
EXCLUSIVE: Writer-director Aysulu Onaran (Balaban) has wrapped principal photography on her latest feature film, Rebirth Island. The film is a historical spy thriller based on true events from the Cold War.
Executive producers on the pic are Rose Ganguzza (Fatima) and Adilet Yessimov (Balaban). The film was shot on location in Kazakhstan. Onaran will present the project to buyers at EFM.
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The film’s synopsis reads: It’s summer 1992, a month before the collapse of the Soviet empire. A military scientist, Colonel Dautov, serves at the top-secret laboratory on Rebirth Island. The Colonel’s beliefs and military oath are challenged when he rescues an imprisoned woman from the laboratory and helps a CIA agent to find the secret burial ground of 200 tons of the bioweapon Anthrax-836 to avert the biological apocalypse.
Dulyga Akmolda, Vlad Bukatkin, Malika Baygubenova, Olga Landina, and Alexey Shemes star in the film. Additional credits include Director of Photography David Khayznikov (Netflix’s To The Lake), Art Director Beken Narbay (Balaban), and Costume Designer Elena Yakovleva (Time of Heroes).
“I was born in the Kazakh Soviet Republic and always intrigued by historical events during the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union,” said Onaran. “Military regiment on Rebirth Island was depicted in games like ‘Call of Duty’ and ‘Far Cry,’ but I wanted to show the real horror of the ‘Horror Lab’ in film. This story speaks to the critical and very topical issue of combating the buildup and proliferation of biological weapons.”
Executive Producer Rose Ganguzza added: “A good film informs as well as entertains. With Rebirth Island, Aysulu has reminded us that the past is prologue and that history can often repeat itself in unpleasant ways.”
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