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Interviewed and Written by Haram Kim | Edited by Elisa Lau & Sherry Liang 
The Groundwork: A Story About HopeLooking back, Amina recalls the “a-ha” moment when the vision for her student film, ‘Ümit’, finally clicked: Amina: "I tend to brainstorm by sketching ideas in my sketchbook. At one point, I kept drawing Central Asian girls on horses, in yurts, as warriors. It reminded me a lot of Mulan, and I liked that. But I started thinking: What if I went a different direction? Instead of making her a warrior, what if she was a scientist? I sketched a scene where a traditionally nomadic yurt was filled with telescopes, books, and scientific tools. The character was looking at the stars through a telescope. It felt like a sacred, intellectual space in a small village. That sketch sparked the whole idea.”  ‘Ümit’ Early Story Beat by Amina Umirzhanova A SCAD animation student at the time, Amina kept working on the story which later grew to become the center for her senior thesis film project. Limited to a 30-week deadline, Amina needed a plan. And so, Amina pitched her idea around campus where she would establish the film's core team of 10 people, with additional collaborators who lent support along the way.  'ÜMIT' Core Team (top row from left to right): Lauren Danielson, Jialin Fan, Lucia Naples, Amina Umirzhanova, Farzeen Anam, Vaibhav Mathur; (bottom row left to right) Chiu Yi, Paloma Poggione Biondi, Hoi Ching Ng, Renato Dominguez Together, the ‘Ümit’ team worked to build a story that could resonate across all cultures. That’s when they leaned into the concept of hope. Amina: “The name of the protagonist is also called ‘Ümit’, which means ‘hope’ in Kazakh. When Ümit shares her ideas to bring back the Sun, she sparks hope over what feels like a dark and somber space.” As director, Amina focused on reviewing daily progress, making final decisions, and steering the overall direction. During the early pre-production phase for ‘Ümit’, Amina often drew inspiration from Kazakh poems. Amina: “One example came from a Kazakh poem called ‘Śakirt Oyi / Шәкірт Ойы / Thoughts of a Student by Sultanmakhmut Toraygirov’. This poem shared themes about the dark sky and the sun, with youth that invoked feelings of hope and the future.”  'ÜMIT' Early Ideation, ink on paper and "Śakirt Oyi" by S.Toraygirov “ ‘UMIT’ is essentially a love letter to my heritage.” - Amina Umirzhanova (Director) Amina: “The sun became the perfect metaphor: this unreachable, almost mythical source of light and possibility. We imagined a world where people had never seen the sun. Life was hard, but to them, that was just normal.” With the sun boldly displayed in the Kazakh flag, one could assume that the story is based on an existing Kazakh folktale. But actually, it’s not – the idea bloomed organically from a combination of Amina’s personal interests: Central Asian culture, history, and astronomy. Amina: “Central Asia is often represented through nomadic imagery, which is beautiful, but I noticed the scientific side of the culture, especially during the 15th-century Timurid Renaissance, was rarely depicted in modern media. The visuals from that period – Islamic art, ancient sciences, and nomadic life – all blend together so beautifully. I realized I hadn’t seen anything like that represented in animation, so I wanted to tell a story that embraced all of those elements.” Memories of A Sunless WorldThe film Ümit is set in a terrain ravaged by winter storms, and that cold is no stranger to Amina. Before flying to the states for college, Amina spent her last years in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, which is considered the second coldest capital in the world. Amina: “You'd have to wear leggings, then leggings over those leggings, and then pants, and then extra layers, coats, and the biggest puffy coat – usually very long. I remember on the coldest days, you could go outside and feel frostbite on your face right away.” These lived experiences, unique to Amina, served as a compass in capturing the right feeling for the film.  'ÜMIT' storyboard Central Asian Patterns, Yurts, and MagicFrom ornate Kazakh patterns to the structure of traditional yurts, Amina and her team researched and worked diligently to compose a visual language that expressed the tribe’s identity and the story’s magic. Amina: “Central Asian patterns are usually distinct, but we used ones with a lot of swirls and curved qualities. Some patterns were symbolic and referenced the sun. And, even if not explicitly visible, it’s still a part of their cultural identity and history."  Early designs for a magical pattern inspired by Central Asian ornaments and sun motifs Instead of adding patterns on clothes – which would make 2D animation more tedious – the team decided to focus the patterns mostly in the sets. Amina: “For our set, our biggest inspiration was Cartoon Saloon movies because we really liked how they incorporated patterns into their environments. We decided to do the same by overlapping various carpets and materials that have Central-Asian-inspired patterns into the interior of the yurts.”  Ümit's yurt, designed by Chiu Yi In the film, only two yurts are central to the story. The first is the town hall yurt, where villagers gather to eat in the dark. In contrast, Ümit’s personal yurt – her sacred workspace – was where viewers can feel warmth from the lit oil lamps and the textile surroundings. Amina: “We also referenced historical Islamic astronomy charts for the papers pasted around her workspace. These were often drawn in dark red ink, mapping planetary systems in Arabic and ancient Turkic scripts – a nod to the character’s inherited knowledge.”  Still shot, Ümit and Kids building the drum in her yurt. Animation - Hanna Wang (with additional help), Comp - Hoi Ching Ng, Background - Chiu Yi and Farzeen Anam Amina and her team encountered a problem: how will Ümit build the magical drum? They found the perfect solution: a yurt! With the help of the other young villagers, Ümit sacrifices her yurt to build the drum that will help bring back the Sun. Amina: “Historically, yurts are built from a mix of animal hide and woven textiles, layered for insulation. Their round structure is designed to withstand harsh winds. And in Kazakh culture, the rope that wraps around the yurt’s frame symbolizes family prosperity.” Perhaps the true magic lies not in the drum itself, but in the cultural ties and spirit woven into the textiles and materials.  Film-still, a magical power gets blasted from the drum in the snowy steppes. FX anim - Jialin Fan and Amina Umirzhanova, Comp - Paloma Poggione Biondi, Background - Farzeen Anam ‘Ümit’: Director’s Hope Amina: “I hope that ÜMIT's story would inspire artists from not only Central Asia but other underrepresented communities around the globe to tell their authentic stories.” The film is aimed to be released to the public in the Spring of 2027. Watch the trailer here: A big thank you to Amina for sharing the behind-the-scenes of ‘Ümit’ with the AIA community. You can learn more about the film at @umit.shortfilm and follow Amina @yoominori on Instagram.  Comments are closed.
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