Left to Right: Director Gohar Barseghyan, Stepan Kyutunyan, Kristine Shamlikian, and Hagop Ohanessian
March 2009 • Vol. 30, No. 3 (105)
The Armenian Film Festival
at Fresno State annually showcases films with an
Armenian theme, concerning Armenian issues, or those that
have been directed by
Armenians around the country or around the world. This year, the Armenian
Studies Program received numerous films
that were evaluated and chosen for the
10th Annual Armenian Film Festival.
This year the Film Festival
took place at 7:00PM on Friday,
February 20, in the Industrial Technology
Building, Room 101, on
campus. The Festival is supported, in part, with funds from the University
Student
Union Diversity Awareness Program. Three films were featured: A Road
Less Traveled: The Handjian Story directed by Denise Gentilini;Behind
the Scenes: Featuring Gor directed by Alen Tarassians; and SF Hye
directed by Gohar Barseghyan. She was in attendance to discuss
her film and to
answer any questions about the Armenian community in San Francisco. A capacity audience filled the
theater.
The first
film, A Road
Less Traveled: The Handjian Story, is a documentary about the lives of
Malvine and Kourken Handjian, who tell of their
first-hand experiences as
children witnessing the atrocities perpetrated by the Ottoman Turks upon the
Armenians, from 1915-1923, and
their own displacement during the “relocation”
process. These experiences are part of what comes to be known as the Armenian
Genocide
and first genocide of the twentieth century. Most of the audience was
saddened by the horrible actions committed by the Turks towards
the Armenian population.
It was almost unbearable to hear the stories of women being raped, of families
forced to move out of their
homes, and of the mass killings of the Armenians in
different villages. Survivors of the Genocide are gradually passing away and it
is
this kind of film that helps educate people on the horrible events that took
place in the early part of the century. It also motivates
the younger
generation of Armenians to fight for justice. Producer Gentilini is the
granddaughter of Malvine and Kourken.
The second
film, Behind
the Scenes: Featuring Gor, presents a story told by singer/songwriter Gor
Mkhitarian. The film is about his journey coming
from Armenia and meeting various musicians in Los Angeles and forming a
band. This film was entertaining for the audience because it
portrayed a young
band and their gradual success as musicians. There are four members in the band
and they all work together to produce
great music. Gor and his band have
performed in various cities across the United
States, including San Francisco,
New York, Philadelphia,
andLos Angeles.
The last film screened was SF
Hye, which gave an insider view of the Armenian community of San Francisco. The film
depicts
a community, who bands together despite hardships, to achieve wonders.
Director Gohar Barseghyan was born in Armenia
and came to theUnited
States in 2000. After living in Los Angeles for a few years, she and her family decided to
move and eventually made her residence
in San
Francisco in 2003. She received her Masters degree in
comparative literature and drama from San Francisco State
University.
She was
motivated to make the documentary when she was asked about her native homeland.
She wanted to explore the Armenian population
living in San
Francisco and what it meant for them being a San Francisco Hye (San Francisco
Armenian).
Interestingly, Armenians
first
settled in San Francisco after first
having lived in Fresno.
Thousands of Armenians went to San
Francisco for better employment opportunities
and
because of general interest in the area. The most important monument in San Francisco for
Armenians is the Mount Davidson Cross,
which represents the victims of the
Armenian Genocide. The film outlined the six-year struggle by the Armenian
community to purchase
the Cross and to successfully light it once a year on
April 24, the day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide.
The 10th Annual Armenian
Film
Festival was a success and there was positive feedback from the audience.
We hope to see you next year at the 11th Annual Armenian
Film Festival!