Armenia-Turkey Cinema Platform

Armenia-Turkey Cinema Platform | Turkish-Armenian Yerevan Workshop

Press-release
10 December, 2008, Yerevan

CREATION OF ARMENIA – TURKEY CINEMA PLATFORM AS A RESULT OF TURKISH-ARMENIAN 2-nd CINEMA WORKSHOP

On December 4 – 8, Turkish–Armenian 2nd Cinema Workshop which was organized by the cooperative initiatives of Golden Apricot International Film Festival and Anadolu Kültür association (Turkey) took place in Yerevan within the framework of Armenian– Turkish Cultural Initiative. Armenian Writer’s Union also joined to initiative. The workshop was entitled “Cinema as Means of Cross-Border Dialogue and Mutual Understanding” and aimed to encourage cross-border dialogue and mutual understanding via means of cinema. It focused on the possibilities of co-production between Armenian and Turkish film directors and producers. Yerevan workshop was the logical continuation of the 1st Turkish – Armenian Workshop held on April 2008 in Istanbul.

The workshop was supported by the Arts and Culture Network Program of the Open Society Institute, British Embassy in Armenia and Eurasia Partnership Foundation.

10 young filmmakers, script-writers and film-journalists from Turkey were invited to Armenia to participate in the workshop. There were both young filmmakers and such famous director in Turkey as Ezel Akay. Films by Armenian and Turkish directors were screened during the workshop. Border by Harutyun Khachatryan, Story of People in War and Peace by Vardan Hovhannisyan, and War After War by Ara Shirinyan were among them. The screenings were followed by active discussions. The first day of workshop began in the 2nd part of the day. It began with visiting CIVILITAS Foundation, where participants got acquainted to Vardan Oskanyan, former minister of MFA and discussed their future projects.

A visit to Parajanov museum was organized for the participants where Levon Abrahamyan (a friend of Parajanov, visual anthropologist) made a presentation of Parajanov’s life, activities, works and screened some of the short films by the Master.

The next session of the workshop took place at the Guest House of Armenian Writer’s Union in Tsaghkadzor, where the participants met with young writers. During the meeting Armenian writers watched Turkish films and discussed the possibilities to work together on scripts scenario for Turkish-Armenian co-production in future.

The participants visited Tsitsernakaberd – the Monument to Armenian Genocide on the last day of the Workshop.

As a result of this seminar the following suggestions were made by the participants:

Organizing a festival of Turkish films in Armenia and a festival of Armenian films in Turkey. In particular, there might be a retrospective of Armenian classical films in Istanbul, spring 2009. This will give an opportunity to the audience of two countries to get known each other’s culture, identify similarities and differences.
Working together on scripts for short, documentary and feature films aimed for co-production
Publication of an Armenian–Turkish film project book, which will be presented to Istanbul and Yerevan International Film Festivals, particularly at Directors Across Borders Co-production Forum, as well as to different international film funds.

The establishment of Armenia–Turkey Cinema Platform was the main result of Armenian - Turkish 2nd Cinema Workshop. It will function as a common space for joint activities and co-production, where through forums and interactive discussions, as well as through formulation of creative teams, scripts and film projects will be suggested. This will serve as a basement for Armenian-Turkish co-productions in future. As for the first steps, it is suggested to create Almanac of Armenian-Turkish short films, with the participation of young filmmakers from both countries.

The Statement on the establishment of Armenia–Turkey Cinema Platform is presented attached.

Background:

Golden Apricot IFF always makes important the idea of regional cooperation and promotes its realization. Turkish films’ noticeable rise during last years, international successes and the rouse of the national minorities’ problems in Turkey making mutual interests, created cooperative work field.

Since 2005, participants, jury members and just attendants from Turkey have been received in Yerevan in the framework of Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival and in further years they were actively involved in the Regional Co-production Forum “Directors Across Borders” within the framework of Golden Apricot.
On April 10-14, 2008, with the initiative of Anadolu Kültür Association 12 Armenian film makers and film-journalists where invited to participate in the first Turkish-Armenian workshop on cinema entitled “Cinema and History” in the framework of Istanbul International Film Festival. Among the participants were not only young and promising film makers who were interested in co-production, but also skilled and already well known film professionals. It aimed to find out the way cinema comments on history and also to make new cooperative programs between Turkish and Armenian filmmakers.

About Anadolu Kültür Association:

Anadolu Kültür, which is devoted to the mission of reconstruction Turkish national minorities’ cultural values, is a non profit company established in 2002 by representatives of arts and culture world. It aims to encourage arts and cultural activities outside Istanbul, bring artists from Istanbul together with people interested in art in Anatolia and support local artists, promote cultural projects in Kars aimed at urban development.

The cooperation between Golden Apricot Film Festival and Anadolu Kültür Association were established in the year of 2006.