Legend of Kazakh animation – Amen Khaidarov
Amen Khaidarov is the Soviet, Kazakh animation director, artist, screenwriter, Honored Artist of the Kazakh SSR, Laureate of the State Prize of the Kazakh SSR. He is considered one of the founders of Kazakh animation.
He was born on May 3, 1923 in the Zhinishke village of the Nurinsk district of the Karagandy region. As soon as he graduated from school, the war had begun, and the young man found himself on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War. During the most difficult months of the war, he was among the defenders of Stalingrad, then, he liberated Ukraine. In the battle of Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi, he was seriously wounded.
After the war, A. Khaidarov decided to learn how to draw professionally. From 1946 to 1950, he had studied at the Kazakh State Theater and Art College, majoring in graphics.
Then, wanting to improve his skills, he entered the Moscow All-Union State Institute of Cinematography (workshop by professor I. Ivanov-Vano). A year later, he graduated from the film director’s courses at the Gerasimov All-Russian University of Cinematography and returned to his native Kazakhstan.
Upon the graduation, Amen Khaidarov became the creator of a new genre in Kazakh cinema — animation. Five or six cartoons were shot at the Kazakhfilm per year, and a special department of animated films was formed as well. In 1966, Amen Khaidarov became its artistic director.
The first Kazakh cartoon “Why the Swallow Has the Tail with Little Horns?” came into the world in 1967, and its author was A. Khaidarov. This cartoon became the winner of the Third All-Union Film Festival in Leningrad. Also, it has been shown in 48 countries.
In 1975, he won a prize at the Bronze Praxinoscope, International Cartoon Film Festival in New York. After him, the cartoons “Aksak Kulan” (A Lame Kulan), “Tail” (Kuyrshyk), “Khoja-Nasyr – Builder”, “Forty Fables”, “Sunny Bunny” (Ainakun) and others were born, which made a great contribution to the development of Kazakh culture. Thus, the name of the director-animator Amen Khaidarov had become known to many people.
From 1975 to 1983, he was the secretary of Kazakhstan’s Union of Cinematographers. From 1983 to 1991, he served as the Chairman of the Union of Artists of Kazakhstan. Besides that, Amen Khaidarov was a member of creative unions: the Union of Artists of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan’s Union of Cinematographers, the Union of Kazakh Journalists, and the Kazakhstan Union of Designers.
In 2005, due to the anniversary of the 60th year of Victory, the “Fate” movie was shot. This project was carried out under the direct supervision of Amen Khaidarov.
The multi-part cartoon “Tail” (Kuyrshyk) was shot in the same creative way of searches and finds, as well as in tireless work. This work, led by Amen Khaidarov, started in 2002 and was carried out jointly with employees of the Kazakh National Film Studio and students of the Temirbek Zhurgenev Academy of Arts. Since 1993, A. Khaidarov had been teaching at this Academy, training the young animators.
Amen Khaidarov was a member of almost all international associations of animators. In addition, he was involved in artistic drawing. He created the paintings “Okzhetpes”, “Zheke-batyr”, “The explosion of the atomic bomb in 1949”, “The Last Seconds”, “On the land of Abai”, as well as the miniatures and portraits based on the “Leyli and Majnun” poem.
It is worth noting that Amen Khaidarov is an Honored Figure of Kazakhstan. In 1978, he became a Laureate of the State Prize. Also, he received a Presidential Scholarship for outstanding artists of Kazakhstan. In 2003, A. Khaidarov became a Laureate of the Independent Tarlan Award and Soros grants.
Amen Khaidarov passed away on February 4, 2015.
