‘Rebirth Island’: ‘Balaban’ director’s Cold War spy thriller wraps production, heads to EFM

Exclusive: Writer-director Aysulu Onaran (Saying) wrapped up principal photography in his latest feature film, Rebirth Island. The film is a historical spy thriller based on true events of the Cold War.

The film is executive produced by Rose Ganguza (Fatima) and Adilet Yesimov (Saying) The film was shot on location in Kazakhstan. Onaran will present the project to buyers at EFM.

The synopsis of the film reads: It is the summer of 1992, a month before the fall of the Soviet Empire. A military scientist, Colonel Dautov, works in a top-secret laboratory on Rebirth Island. The colonel’s faith and military oath are challenged when he rescues a captive woman from a laboratory and helps a CIA agent find a secret burial site for 200 tons of the bioweapon Anthrax-836 to avoid a biological holocaust.

The film stars Duliga Akmolda, Vlad Bukatkin, Maleka Begubeneva, Olga Landina and Alexey Shams. Additional credits include director of photography David Khayznikov (Netflix towards the lake), art director Becken Narbe (Saying), and costume designer Elena Yakovleva (Time for heroes)

“I was born in the Kazakh Soviet Republic and have always been fascinated by historical events during the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union,” said Onaran. “The military regiment on Rebirth Island has been depicted in games like ‘Call of Duty’ and ‘Far Cry’, but I wanted to show the true horror of the ‘Horror Lab’ in the film. This story speaks to the critical and very relevant issue of combating the buildup and proliferation of biological weapons.”

Executive producer Rose Ganguza added: “A good film informs as well as entertains. With Rebirth Island, Aysulu reminds us that the past is prologue and that history can often repeat itself in unpleasant ways.