Origins of the Apple (The)

The film takes us into the mountains of Tian Shan in Kazakhstan where the first apple trees were born, 165 million years ago. Called Malus sieversii, they grow in thick forests of trees, all different from each other, some of them being three hundred years old and sometimes more than thirty meters high. Edible and delicious, in its shapes and colours, the wild apple Malus sieversii has this special characteristic of being naturally resistant to the traditional pathogens of the domestic apple, including apple scab.

Through a scientific and historical investigation, the film chronicles the life of a Kazakh scholar, Aymak Djangaliev, who devoted himself to studying and protecting this unique world heritage. It also highlights the contemporary issues brought up by the discovery of the apple of origins. Malus sieversii offers the possibility of a new fruit tree growing, requiring no pesticides: it represents a biodiversity which is essential to protect for the future generations.