International Film Festival of Ottawa

Welcome to the USA (with Body So Fluorescent)

Expired March 20, 2021 7:00 AM
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Welcome to the USA (Feature Film): Approved for a Green Card to emigrate to the U.S., Aliya navigates her life in Kazakhstan as an independent, lesbian woman for the last time.


Body So Fluorescent (Short Film): Two friends have a falling out after a night of dancing.


About the Pairing:

Welcome to the USA and Body So Fluorescent tell very different, almost opposing stories about modern experiences of LGBTQ identities, highlighting aspects that are rarely seen on screen.


Through Aliya, Welcome to the USA explores the complexities of “home” and the conflicting feelings that arise from leaving behind everything, and everyone, you’ve ever known, even when it’s the only way to live your truth.


Body So Fluorescent, by contrast, shines a light on the toxic, and all too common, power structures that exist even within oppressed communities, and forces a conversation that is as difficult as it is necessary. The film directly confronts the elements of racism and the appropriation of black female identities within the white gay community, and underscores that remaining silent only allows these harmful dynamics to fester, both in friendships and in society.


- Devin Hartley

Aliya, a 36-year-old Kazakh lesbian woman, for the first time in her life tried to play the Green Card Lottery and won. Now she cannot decide whether to leave Kazakhstan or stay.

  • Year
    2019
  • Runtime
    95 minutes
  • Language
    Kazakh, Russian (English subtitles)
  • Country
    Kazakhstan
  • Director
    Assel Aushakimova
  • Screenwriter
    Assel Aushakimova
  • Producer
    Assel Aushakimova
  • Cast
    Dinara Alieva, Daniyar Beisov, Sultana Bektassova
  • Cinematographer
    Sardar Baymoldin
  • Editor
    Azamat Altybasov
  • Production Design
    Nazym Marat
  • Sound Design
    Erlan Utepbergenov, Daut Zhantasov