Sea Tomorrow

Denis Ten made history when he became the first ever Kazakhstani figure skater to win an Olympic medal. Years later, the decorated athlete was murdered in his home country, setting off protests after years of unrest and generating new movements among those who want to challenge the political regime and make them take notice of their citizenry.

Colored hair, earrings in ears, bright clothes - an image that is very different from the Kazakh standard of masculinity. This is how the main characters of this, members of the Kazakhstani group Ninety One, look like. Many will not find anything unusual in the image of the musicians, however, the group’s popularity among Kazakh-speaking teenagers caused a great indignation of part of society, which led to street protests, disruptions of concerts and pressure from the authorities. The appearance of Ninety One revealed a whole layer of social and cultural conflicts within Kazakhstani society - between urban and rural culture, between traditionalism and globalization, between the vertical of power and personal freedom.