Whose Voice is This? and Her Right

Whose Voice is This?

WHOSE VOICE IS THIS? is a collaborative work by Uzbek filmmaker and artist Saodat Ismailova and Kazakh artist Dana Iskakova. It was commissioned by Arsenal for the Archival Assembly #3 festival in 2024 and was realized during a Living Archive residency with support from the Goethe-Institut Uzbekistan. The Living Archive residency started in 2011 in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut and offers international curators and artists the opportunity to carry out research and watch film from the Arsenal archive with the aspiration of developing their own project based in this research. WHOSE VOICE IS THIS? explores the soundscapes of the collection of Central Asian films in the archive. By examining dubbed voices, background effects, and original soundtracks, the work traces Soviet ideology’s influence on films from the 1960s to the 1990s, capturing its gradual erosion and the impact of Perestroika.

Her Right

This program, focused on films that explore and engage with film archives, will feature further works from the DAVRA collective, a research group founded in 2021 by Saodat Ismailova for documenta fifteen. DAVRA connects and nurtures the Central Asian art scene through dynamic exchanges, reimagining the region’s cultural narratives via public programs, screenings, and publications. The program will include several films from its members, including Saodat Ismailova’s HER RIGHT, featuring excerpts from Uzbek feature films dating from 1927 to 1985. The film revolves around the Soviet government’s Hujum campaign directed at emancipating Muslim women by discouraging the use of the burqa, locally known as Paranji, and their adherence to religious prescriptions.

Films:
Her Five Lives Saodat Ismailova Uzbekistan 2020 Digital file 13 min.
Apat Nazira Karimi Kazakhstan/Austria 2023 Digital file 6 min.
Tashkent 58-88 Zumrad Mirzalieva Uzbekistan 2024 Digital file 18 min.
Egiz Ishek Twin Strings Aïda Adilbek Kazakhstan 2025 Digital file 18 min.