ART THAT UNITES THE WORLD: THE FINALS OF THE IX ECG EURASIAN FILM FESTIVAL AND XIV OPEN EURASIA 2026 TOOK PLACE IN LONDON AS PART OF MEGA FEST

From 23–28 May, London successfully hosted the international MEGA Fest 2026, which brought together the Open Eurasia Literary Festival & Book Forum and the ECG Eurasian Film Festival. For several days, the British capital became a space for international cultural dialogue, uniting writers, poets, publishers, researchers, artists, filmmakers, and public figures from dozens of countries around the world.

The festival began with an informal opening at Fitzroy House Museum, where guests enjoyed a guided tour followed by a cosy tea gathering. In this friendly atmosphere, participants had the opportunity to get acquainted and congratulate Natalia Tingaeva, ECG (London) Duardian from Moscow, on her birthday.

The official festival programme opened with an art exhibition featuring works by Seid Atambaev (Kyrgyzstan), Oksana Zhukova (United Kingdom), and Vita Tocilovska (United Kingdom) at The Mercury Shopping Centre. Visitors included not only MEGA Fest 2026 participants but also members of London’s creative community and local residents. The works of Eurasian artists received warm praise from the international audience.

The first two days of the festival were entirely dedicated to the competitive and non-competitive programme of the ECG Eurasian Film Festival, traditionally held in partnership with the Romford Film Festival. Screenings were combined with presentations by directors, allowing audiences not only to immerse themselves in the atmosphere of auteur cinema but also to engage directly with filmmakers and their representatives, while discovering the cultural nuances of Central Asian countries that remain relatively little known abroad.

The screening series opened with Oksana Zhukova’s art trailer I Can Fly, serving as a continuation of the exhibition. The audience was then presented with the winning films of the Cinema Future 2025 youth festival — Second Chance (India Anne Mitchell, US) and Kabutar (Shakhinabonu Azimova and Albina Akhmadeyeva, Uzbekistan). They were introduced by ECG (London) Ambassador and one of the festival curators, Olga Lawson. This was followed by presentations of the winning films from the Burabay International Film Festival 2025, introduced by jury member and London Film Academy graduate Timur Akhmedjanov. The short films The Cellar by Dmitry Pasechnyuk (Russia) and Hatred by Almas Kaisar (Kazakhstan) generated considerable interest among viewers.

Guests then attended the presentation of British author Natalie Bays’ unique book Aged 10 Years, created to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Romford Film Festival. The book serves as a guide to the signature cocktails of the festival cinema bar, inspired by the social culture and atmosphere of Romford’s film-loving community. Guests enjoyed tasting the featured drinks and hearing the stories behind them from the authors Natalie, Charlotte, and Carrie.

Particularly popular with the British audience was the special screening of the legendary Soviet film Assa starring Viktor Tsoi, which has long since become a classic.

One of the central events of the film programme was a special block dedicated to Uzbekistan. It featured several remarkable works that went beyond the traditional boundaries of Central Asian festival cinema. The first was the musical Batyr Zakirov & Frank Sinatra: The Meeting That Could Have Happened…, which received the Eurasian Audience Choice Special Recognition Award, presented in absentia to Boris Babaev. The film attracted significant audience interest thanks to its unique artistic concept and tribute to the cultural legacy of the legendary Batyr Zakirov.

The international jury also highly praised the second work in this block. Gulchekhra-Begim Makhmudova received Special Recognition in the Best Eurasian Animated Film category for her project Legends of the Great Silk Road. The jury noted the project’s contribution to promoting the cultural heritage of the Great Silk Road, advancing humanistic values, and developing Eurasian animation. This is not Makhmudova’s first success in London; her fairy tale books previously received the Hertfordshire Press Award.

Particularly noteworthy was the documentary A New Look: Uzbek Fashion Post-Independence by young British director Dan Akhm, exploring the development of contemporary fashion in Uzbekistan. The film became the basis for an international discussion about which Central Asian themes are currently of greatest interest to Western audiences. A panel discussion with international experts and festival guests followed the screenings.

The documentary Children’s, The Seed’s of the Future by Kazakh director Saule Rysbayeva encouraged audiences to reflect on important issues. The film received Best Eurasian Documentary Special Recognition and generated a strong response due to its profound social focus, humanistic message, and attention to the future generation. Viewers highlighted its ability to speak a universal language of human values, connecting local concerns with the global agenda.

This was followed by the presentation of Naked Nimbus by Kyrgyz-born author Shakhsanem Murray and The Gold of the Aryan by Armenian writer Elena Aslanyan. The presentation took place in an unusual format, with book trailers screened on the cinema’s large screen. Murray’s book was presented by London-based actor Yuldosh Juraboev, originally from Uzbekistan, together with his colleagues. After screening the trailer, they performed an excerpt from the book as a mini theatrical production. Elena Aslanyan, meanwhile, was present in person and spoke to the audience about her book, its creation, and her future plans.

The film programme concluded with the awards ceremony for the ECG Eurasian Film Festival and the Romford Film Festival. Among the distinguished guests was the Mayor of Havering, Sue Ospreay, who delivered warm words of support to the participants.

WINNERS OF THE ECG EURASIAN FILM FESTIVAL 2026

Best Eurasian Feature Film
1st Place: K-Poper — Ebrahim Amini (Iran)
2nd Place: Doll — Egor Beroev (Russia)
3rd Place: The Song Sustxotin — Husnora Rozmatova (Uzbekistan)

Best Eurasian Short Film
1st Place: Crests — Dmitry Pasichnyuk (Russia)
2nd Place: W: A Return to Oz — Daniel Howard-Baker (United Kingdom)
3rd Place: Star — Eva Murashko (Russia)

Best Eurasian Documentary
1st Place: Enemy Number Three — Vladimir Sumashedov (Russia)
2nd Place: Lidiya Grigorieva. I Choose to Live — Maria Bregman (United Kingdom)
3rd Place: Become a Man — Erzhan Shamurzayev (Kyrgyzstan)

Best Eurasian Animated Film
1st Place: Shadowland — Bellopropello (Switzerland)
2nd Place: Textura Vitae — Junqing Li, Ziqi Wang, Lan Ou, Sin Wun Sit (Hong Kong)

Best Eurasian Mobile Video
1st Place: Invented Love — Pablo Ferreira (Brazil)
2nd Place: The Happiness Experiment — Jackie Farris (USA)
3rd Place: We Used to Be Forbidden — Saba Ghasemi (United Kingdom)

Best Eurasian Screenplay
1st Place: Angels Desired — Lukas Shea (Germany)
2nd Place: Teach Yourself to Be Merciful — Saeed Nizamov, Nadjiya Garieva (Russia)

Best Eurasian Book Trailer
1st Place: The Gold of the Aryan — Elena Aslanyan (Armenia)

Eurasian Audience Choice Award
Batyr Zakirov & Frank Sinatra: The Meeting That Could Have Happened… — Boris Babaev (Uzbekistan)

Special Recognition for the Promotion of Humanistic Values
Children, the Seeds of the Future — Saule Rysbayeva (Kazakhstan)
Legends of the Great Silk Road — Gulchekhra-Begim Makhmudova (Uzbekistan)

A key highlight of the literary programme was the international Open Eurasia 2026 competition, which attracted hundreds of writers and artists from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Australia, France, Germany, Israel, Armenia, Poland, Ukraine, the United States, China, Lithuania, Belarus, Greece, Russia, and many other countries. Today, Open Eurasia remains the oldest and largest independent non-governmental international literary competition accepting submissions in the national languages of the CIS countries and awarding grants for book publication in Europe.

Open Eurasia Literary Festival & Book Forum opened with the traditional Voices of Eurasia marathon for finalists of the Open Eurasia competition. Each finalist introduced themselves and their work: guests who travelled to London presented in person, while remote participants were represented through video messages, which are also available on the official YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/@ecgtv). The presentations took place in a professional cinema hall in Romford, adding both atmosphere and prestige to the event. Every year, these presentations help the strongest finalists, whose works have already received high praise from the jury, earn additional points that can become decisive when determining the winners.

Following the marathon, Marat Akhmedjanov, head of the British publishing holding Silk Road Media, delivered a workshop on the prospects of promoting Eurasian literature in Latin American countries through the Spanish language. Participants were surprised to discover that this market is comparable in size to the English-speaking segment and significantly larger than the Russian-speaking market, while competition is considerably lower and interest in translated literature is much higher.

While the organisers were calculating the final results and participants anxiously awaited the outcome of the competition, the festival programme delighted guests with a series of engaging presentations by invited speakers.

The programme opened with a presentation of the poetry collection God & Love by honoured Kyrgyz poet Atantai Akbarov, presented to an international audience in English translation for the first time thanks to Hertfordshire Press (www.hertfordshirepress.com). The event acquired a special atmosphere because the presentation took place on the poet’s birthday, becoming not only a literary evening but also an important symbolic milestone in promoting Kyrgyz culture abroad. Representatives of the Kyrgyz community in London, supported by Baarinsa Tagaeva, together with festival participants, writers, and guests, gathered to celebrate the occasion. The presentation included poetry readings, discussions with the audience, an autograph session, and a conversation about the role of contemporary Central Asian poetry in the international cultural space.

Another Hertfordshire Press author, Aziz Isa Elkun, a representative of the Uyghur diaspora, also addressed the audience. His collection of translations of works by imprisoned Uyghur poets was published in 2025 and has already become one of the most widely discussed books of recent years.

The speaker programme concluded with a lecture by Kazakh researcher Zhumagali Magziev entitled The Enterprises of English and French Entrepreneurs in Saryarka (Kazakhstan) at the Beginning of the 20th Century. The purpose of his visit to London was not only to present his research but also to meet descendants of the people featured in his study.

Networking is one of the festival’s primary goals, and therefore participants who were not involved in the competition were also given an opportunity to introduce themselves. Among them were Oksana Zhukova, Oktom Kalyeva, Timur Akhmedzhanov, Dan Akhm, and Anna Garib.

The main event of the festival was undoubtedly the awards ceremony. To the sound of beating hearts and mounting anticipation, the results of the 2025/2026 competition season were announced.

Special Nomination “For the Power of Imagery”

• Karybek Baibosunov, Kyrgyzstan
• A. Chemeris, Poland

Special Nomination “For the Authorial Voice”

• Vitaliy Angelis, Ukraine
• Dilorom Nishanova, USA
• Alex Levin-Arlev, Israel

Special Nomination “For Literary Sincerity”

• Bubuyra Bektenova, Kyrgyzstan
• Lidiya Emmanuilov, Israel
• Daniil Razdolsky, Israel

CATEGORY “ART PHOTOGRAPHY”

1st Place: Indira Laktaeva, USA
2nd Place: Andrey Sokolov, Russia
3rd Place: Diana Kozlova, Russia

CATEGORY “PAINTING”

1st Place: Anna Marmalidi, Greece
2nd Place: Elena Savchenko, Kyrgyzstan
3rd Place: Olesya Davidovskaya, Lithuania

CATEGORY “ILLUSTRATION”

1st Place: Alesya Issa, China
2nd Place: Irina, Belarus
3rd Place: Vita Tochilovska, United Kingdom

CATEGORY “POETRY”

1st Place: Marsel Salimov, Bashkortostan, Russia
2nd Place: Yulia Olshevskaya-Hatzenböller, Germany
3rd Place: Nikolai Ivleev, Russia

CATEGORY “PROSE”

1st Place: Taufik Karimov, Kazakhstan
2nd Place:

• Katerina Avdyugina, Australia
• Elena Tkachuk (Cathie Cayros), France

3rd Place:

• Elena Aslanyan (Inana), Armenia
• Meruert Alonso, Kazakhstan

CATEGORY “NON-FICTION”

1st Place: Zhumagali Magziyev, Kazakhstan
2nd Place: Marina Golubovskaya, Kazakhstan
3rd Place: Victoria Levin, Israel

MARIA SHCHEVEL AWARD FOR THE BEST CHILDREN’S BOOK

1st Place: Valeria Strekalovskaya, Ukraine

2nd Place:

• Marina Shulekina-Bryanchaninova, Russia
• Elena Bosler-Guseva, Kyrgyzstan

3rd Place:

• Marina Alyasova, Kazakhstan
• Nadjiya Garieva, Bashkortostan, Russia

In addition to honouring the competition winners, two medals established by ECG (London) and the Silk Road Media holding were also presented during the awards ceremony.

The first was the Jonathan Fryer Memorial Medal, a unique award dedicated to the memory of an outstanding writer, journalist, and public figure whose life was devoted to the ideals of humanism, justice, and enlightenment. The recipients were Jonathan Champion (United Kingdom), Olga Lawson (United Kingdom), Victoria Levin (Israel), Elena Aslanyan (Armenia), and Natella Lalabekyan (USA).

The second medal was established in honour of the 10th anniversary of the Eurasian Creative Guild (ECG London). It is awarded to members who have remained with the organisation throughout all ten years, supporting its cultural projects. This medal was awarded to Natalia Tingaeva (Russia), Raza Syed (United Kingdom), and Yuldosh Juraboev (United Kingdom).

MEGA Fest 2026 once again confirmed London’s status as one of the key centres of international cultural cooperation, while Open Eurasia reaffirmed its role as an important platform for promoting contemporary literature, art, and intellectual dialogue between Eurasian countries and the English-speaking world.

Organisers: Silk Road Media, Hertfordshire Press, Eurasian Creative Guild (London), OCA Magazine, Silk Press

Partners: Romford Film Festival, Romford Film Trust, Lumiere Cinema, The Mercury Shopping Centre, Fitzroy House, Baarinsa Tagaeva

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