'The Florist' heralds the blooming of creative relations between Thai and Kazakh cinema

Thai-Kazakh action thrillers: if nothing else, it's a new genre in the making. But the producers of "The Florist", shot in Bangkok last month, hope the cinematic collaboration proves not just novel but profitable.

"The Florist" pairs Kazakstan's 72-year-old megastar Asanali Ashimov with veteran actress Duangjai Hathaikarn, 54, as his long-ago lover. The plot takes Ashimov, playing a former undercover policeman, from Bangkok to Moscow to the Kazakh capital of Astana as he tries to leave his past behind him.

JSC Kazakhfilm, the national studio, partnered with Bangkok's Memotion for the three-week shoot here. Filming took place in Chinatown and at the Damnoern Saduek floating market in Ratchaburi.

Kazakhfilm president Yermek Amanshayev said Thailand was the perfect choice for the shoot.

"There are very attractive locations, very good financial conditions, very good organisation," he says.

Filming here also furthers Kazakhstan's goal of increasing its cinematic presence abroad, Amanshayev said. This year the country has launched seven international projects, including collaborations in America, Turkey and Russia.

Show me the movie

Such partnerships also provide an opportunity for intercultural exchange. A Thai release for "Florist" is in the works.

"We're shooting a movie here in Bangkok with Thai participation, so why not take a chance and show Kazakhstan to the Thai audience?" Amanshayev mused.

This audience, he said, will see a diverse, vibrant country that has served as a bridge between different worlds since the days of the fabled Silk Road.

"Now in Kazakhstan you have more than 130 nationalities that are friendly to each other and live peacefully, so we want to show the tolerance, the heritage of this great, old culture."

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>> Kazakh cinema is enjoying something of a golden age, with several critically acclaimed movies in recent years.

>> The 2007 action epic "Mongol", a biography of Genghis Khan, received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, the country's first.

 >> "Tulpan", a comedic look at life in the country's remote highlands, won a prize at Cannes last year.