Editor's Note: This article was originally published in the Bradley Herald the hub for FLEX alumni and their stories.
As a Future Leaders Exchange alumna, social activist, and filmmaker, it was to almost no surprise that the inspiration for Elnura's first documentary film came partially from her experience as an exchange student in the United States. Originally from Kyrgyzstan, Elnura spent a year in high school living with an American family in Washington State through the FLEX Program, where her passion for filmmaking with a social mission was set alight.
Elnura's first documentary film Almaz immediately brought her national recognition in Kyrgyzstan. The film follows Almaz, a young Kyrgyz man, who moves to the Netherlands for an exchange year and lives with a Dutch host family. Almaz speaks English well, enjoys living with his host family, and enthusiastically learns about Dutch culture. But behind the character's cheerful fa ade hides a story of incredible human dignity and suffering: the audience learns that Almaz grew up in extreme poverty, survived cancer, and learned English from an old Soviet textbook.The film takes the audience on a captivating journey through Almaz's past as told by his family members.
The story behind the production of Almaz is fascinating in its own right. For months, Elnura had been searching for the right theme and character for her first film, meeting Almaz completely unexpectedly.
"I met him when I worked as a coordinator for a Kyrgyz-Dutch youth exchange. Almaz wanted to participate in the program and meet Dutch students. Before the interview to participate in the program started, I learned that he wouldn't be able to host an exchange student himself. At the time he lived in a shanty town near the city market," remembers Elnura. "I immediately became interested in his story and very quickly realized that I needed to share it with others."
The Story That Started It All
The opening night of Almaz went better than Elnura could have imagined hundreds of people came to watch the documentary film. "I didn't expect to see so many people crying. I didn't want to make a sad film I meant it to be inspirational but many could relate to the story," says Elnura.
The film had a profound effect on one audience member in particular, Omurbek Babanov, who later became the Kyrgyz Prime Minister. When he was elected to office, he organized a special screening of Almaz for 500 state officials and their families.
Afterward, the film was shown in all Kyrgyz cinemas and on state television. Elnura's dream to direct films that shine a spotlight on issues of social justice had come to fruition. Meanwhile, Almaz's dream of pursuing higher education was also realized: Upon graduating from high school, he was admitted to the American University of Central Asia and received a full scholarship covering tuition and board.
The film also inspired a group of local business executives to set up a program offering business start-up and financial support loans to university students and graduates. The first recipient of the loan was Almaz, who used the loan to build a small rental property and to cover the tuition of a struggling student.
Elnura is immensely proud of the impact that her film had on her community and hopes that it will inspire more young people to study and take part in international programs.
"I know first-hand how it feels not to have much money. My parents didn't buy themselves new clothes for years so that they could pay for my English classes. And when I entered the university, I immediately got a job to financially support them and myself too," she says. "That's why I studied extremely hard I knew that education would allow me to do meaningful things."
Changing Kyrgyzstan Through Film
Almaz was followed by another well-received film, The Country We Live In. The film explores gender roles, corruption, and youth empowerment featuring stories of people from Kyrgyzstan. The film received the Kyrgyz National Film Award of 2013 and drew greater attention to social issues in the country.
"Through my movies, I try to portray people's lives the way they really are. My aim is not to anger people by exposing societal flaws, but rather to unite them around the issues and promote the importance of education," notes Elnura.
Elnura's interest in film production began during her FLEX year when she took communications classes at her American high school. A local TV station offered to train students in their studio where Elnura produced her first short films. She also practiced writing scripts, interviewing subjects, and operating cameras.
"Before my FLEX year, I had never had access to a video camera but in the US, I could borrow equipment from my high school or the TV station. In all of my free time, I walked around with a camera or sat in the studio editing. It was absolutely thrilling," she remembers.
Elnura is currently pursuing her Master's in Fine Arts at one of the top film schools in the world, New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Her husband a fellow Kyrgyz film producer and their four children have moved to New York to be with Elnura during her studies. Elnura works day and night to develop her skills in the film industry and her hard work has already begun to pay off. Seide, her most recent short film featuring a young Kyrgyz woman faced with an arranged marriage, won the grand prize at the Asiana International Short Film Festival and at the First Run Film Festival competition hosted by the Tisch School of the Arts. Elnura also presented her film at the 2015 Venice Film Festival and the 2016 Sundance Film Festival 2016.
"Being a film director is physically and emotionally draining. You need to be brave and show your thoughts to the audience and take their criticism well. But that's how I contribute to society. The FLEX program changed my life in a great number of ways and the responsibility to pay back never leaves me," says Elnura.
Words of Advice
After graduating from the Tisch School of the Arts, Elnura plans to continue making films with a social impact but on an international level. She encourages FLEX alumni to raise awareness about social justices as well:
"We won't be able to build a happy society until no one faces discrimination or mistreatment women, children, minorities around the world. The FLEX program wasn't just an exciting tourist trip it gave us opportunities to promote social justice, education, and democracy on a global level. We, the FLEX alumni, should never forget our responsibility to contribute to society.
About the Future Leaders Exchange Program
The Future Leaders Exchange or FLEX program is a competitive, merit-based scholarship program funded by the US Department of State. FLEX students who pass multiple rounds of testing earn a scholarship to spend an academic year in the United States living with a volunteer host family and attending a US high school.
FLEX students gain leadership skills, learn about American society and values, and teach Americans about FLEX countries and cultures. FLEX is a highly competitive program with over 24,000 alumni who have contributed over one million hours of community service in cities and towns across America. The students return home to active alumni networks that carry out inspiring activities. Learn more about hosting a FLEX student.