Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) – The world premiere of the drama series about the preparation for the 1980 Olympics took place in Tashkent. Guests had the opportunity to view the first two episodes and interact with the creators. Starting from 3 August, the series will be available for viewing on the Kinopoisk online platform in both Uzbek and Russian languages.

The series, titled "Games," explores the preparations for the 1980 Summer Olympics. Part of the filming occurred last autumn in Tashkent and the surrounding region, including Angren, Krasnogorsk, and Chirchik. The storyline follows the main characters, employees of the Organizing Committee, who visit Uzbekistan on a working trip and encounter the production of Olympic uniforms. Viewers will see famous streets of the capital, the legendary Chorsu Bazaar, the Abdulqasim Sheikh Madrasa located in Alisher Navoi National Park, and other significant architectural landmarks.

The series incorporates archival footage from the 1980 Olympics and the cities of that era. YandexART, a neural network, helped restore and enhance this footage by adding details, improving video quality, and adapting images for modern screens.

The premiere in Uzbekistan was attended by athletes, members of the film community, and media representatives.

The leading roles in the series are played by Igor Kostolevsky, Leonid Kanevsky, Evgeny Stychkin, Maria Karpova, Grigory Vernik, Alexey Serebryakov, and other actors.

Uzbekistani artists, including Tokhir Saidov, Firuz Maksudov, Tavakkal Turikov, Kamola Avloni, Firdavs Aripov, Zarina Taipova, and Ali Khasanov, participated in the Tashkent filming block.

The director of the series is Evgeny Stychkin, with production handled by LunaPark and Plus Studio, the production center of Yandex that creates films and series for Kinopoisk.

The series "Games" will be released on Kinopoisk on 3 August in both Uzbek and Russian languages. The first two episodes will be available on that day, with new episodes released weekly.

Furkat Usmanov, Director of the Center for the Development of National Cinematography of Uzbekistan: “Uzbekistani viewers are becoming increasingly sophisticated and demanding when it comes to films and series. Today, they are more interested in historical and scientific-popular content. Collaboration with Kinopoisk opens new opportunities for the development of Uzbek cinema. Kinopoisk subscribers worldwide will be able to experience classic hits and modern Uzbek cinema, which will attract even more attention to the uniqueness of Uzbek culture.”

Elena Brodskaya, Director of International Content Development at Yandex: “One of Yandex’s main goals in Uzbekistan is to delight Kinopoisk subscribers with engaging and high-quality content. We have already achieved some success with popular projects on our platform, such as the series ‘Salom Uka’ and the musical show ‘The Voice,’ which we broadcast together with the Zo’r TV channel. We are also translating and dubbing major international projects into Uzbek. We are actively working to ensure that viewers can enjoy Uzbek cinema classics in high quality and are considering creating original projects in collaboration with Uzbek directors and production teams.”

Evgeny Stychkin, Director and Actor of the Series “Games”: “Uzbekistan holds an important place in the film. At one point, when holding the Olympics was under significant threat, enterprises across the country had to decide whether to continue production or stop. The series depicts how Uzbekistan was producing Olympic uniforms and souvenir products, and the decision was made to continue production in solidarity with the Organizing Committee team. This story has many parallels with today’s events and provides an opportunity for reflection.”

Olga Filippuk, Director of Content for Entertainment Services at Yandex: “We are excited and honored to host the world premiere of ‘Games’ in Tashkent. Uzbekistan has been a popular location for filmmakers for decades, and parts of our series were filmed here last autumn. Our series aims to highlight Uzbekistan’s contribution to the Olympics and its strong Olympic tradition. We are grateful to the leadership of Uzbekistan, our local partners, and the Ministry of Culture for making this premiere possible. We hope this will mark the beginning of a long and successful collaboration.”