Role: Co-director, Cinematographer, Editor
Production Company: Documist, Noam Argov Media
Jyrgalan was a thriving mining town until the Soviet Union collapsed and took the town with it. But Emil Ibakov, a charismatic Kyrgyz man, moved back anyway, and began a one-man social media campaign to convince wealthy tourists and famous bloggers that the backcountry skiing above his desolate village were worth the journey.
We made two trips to Jyrgalan across the winter and summer of 2018 and came home with 150 hours of footage. What we found was less about a man selling his village, and more about everything the tourists bring as they flock in.
Behind the Scenes
