WELCOME TO THE USA (Award Encore)

Winner of the NewFest 2020 Grand Jury Prize for International Narrative Feature

How do you choose yourself when everyone around you is stagnated by complacency? In her narrative feature debut, Kazakh filmmaker Assel Aushakimova paints a portrait of a journey she knows intimately, of a 36-year-old lesbian who has spent her life fighting for stability in a homophobic, politically repressed Kazakh society.

Part of NewFest Award Encores
$10 Tickets
Free for NewFest Members
When Aliya (Saltanat Nauruz) wins the Green Card lottery, the only real choice is to make a fresh start in America — but how can she tell her family, friends, and lover that she is leaving them behind? Led by a sensitive, complex performance from Nauruz, WELCOME TO THE USA immersively depicts a queer life that rarely makes it to the screen.

Cast: Saltanat Nauruz

Writer: Assel Aushakimova

Runtime: 94 minutes

The film was followed by a Q&A

Assel Aushakimova