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A FILM FESTIVAL NOT TO MISS
http://asbarez.com/115338/a-film-festival-not-to-miss/
Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013
BY CATHERINE YESAYAN
Halloween, pumpkin patches, and fallen leaves are images that come to
mind when I think of autumn. Festivals are other images associated
with that time of the year. Among all Fall Festivals - from October
Fest to Harvest Fest - there's one that I don't want to miss: that's
the Arpa International Film Festival.
Yes, I'm a diehard fan of that Festival. Over the course of many years
I've followed Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art (AFFMA) events.
Through watching many documentaries at its festival I've gained
insight into the dynamics of global issues.
This proved true again last month, when the Arpa International Film
Festival opened its doors on Thursday evening, September 26, to its
faithful audience at the Egyptian Theatre in the heart of Hollywood.
At the festival, each year I try to watch as many films as possible.
There are always at least one or two films that stand out. This
year the opening night kicked off with "Lady Urmia," a 30-minute
environmental documentary by Mohammad Ehsani, an Iranian filmmaker,
about a dying lake in Iran called Urmia.
The subject of the documentary was close to my heart, because my
mother grew up in Tabriz where the lake is. Like every Persian work
I encounter, its artistic rendition accents the message. The film is
narrated in poetic words by the lake itself. The lake tells us about
its glorious past. Today, Urmia, the world's third largest salt-water
lake, has lost 70% of its waters and is dying.
I went to Urmia once for a family vacation, fifty years ago. At that
time, we enjoyed its beauty and swam in its salty waters. You could
float in the water even if you didn't know how to swim. But God forbid
if a drop of water touched your eyes!
The film shows boats, now abandoned and rusted, that we rode to
travel from one end of the lake to the other. The trip took a whole
day because the boats moved quite slowly. My two grandmothers were
with us. We made them comfortable by giving them the seats on covered
inside benches, while we rode outside under the scorching sun. Today,
there are no more boat trips, and the water is too salty for swimmers.
Catherine Yesayan with Ted Hayes
Another notable documentary at the festival was "Heal America" by
Yervand Kochar. It features advocate Ted Hayes, who has dedicated his
life to increasing sympathy and support for homeless people, and to
making their voices heard. In 1985, Hayes left the comfort of his home
and joined the homeless population in Los Angeles. The film portrays
his plucky and eccentric character, and shows him dressed in his
signature white clothing and flowing white coat. The audience pursues
the discussion of Hayes and Alec, an Armenian cynical writer. We
learn Ted's views of life through the dialog between him and Alec.
After the screening of the film, I had the chance to talk to
Hayes. He said that God and Scriptures motivated him to address the
abject poverty of the homeless population. He said, "I may have a
controversial personality, but what I say is the simple truth. We are
connected to the pain of everyone in the world." The self-proclaimed
"American Gandhi" has high hopes that he will heal America from the
wounds of slavery.
The film festival ended with a documentary about orphans of the
Armenian Genocide. It was an emotional visual portrayal of the
subsequent lives of orphans who lost their parents during the death
marches. The children were housed in schools and orphanages of
countries bordering Turkey. The never-seen pictures of orphanages
put me in awe.
All in all, this year's full schedule of films once again encompassed
the festival's core mission, which is cultural understanding and
global empathy. Kudos to Sylvia Minassian for having a vision to
hold a festival where emerging filmmakers can screen their creative
expressions. The Arpa International Film Festival audience is lucky
to enjoy and learn from a variety of new works.
I cannot finish my review of the festival without mentioning the
wonderful hospitality we received every night - a host of delicious
food. I'm already looking forward to next year!
From: Baghdasarian
http://asbarez.com/115338/a-film-festival-not-to-miss/
Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013
BY CATHERINE YESAYAN
Halloween, pumpkin patches, and fallen leaves are images that come to
mind when I think of autumn. Festivals are other images associated
with that time of the year. Among all Fall Festivals - from October
Fest to Harvest Fest - there's one that I don't want to miss: that's
the Arpa International Film Festival.
Yes, I'm a diehard fan of that Festival. Over the course of many years
I've followed Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art (AFFMA) events.
Through watching many documentaries at its festival I've gained
insight into the dynamics of global issues.
This proved true again last month, when the Arpa International Film
Festival opened its doors on Thursday evening, September 26, to its
faithful audience at the Egyptian Theatre in the heart of Hollywood.
At the festival, each year I try to watch as many films as possible.
There are always at least one or two films that stand out. This
year the opening night kicked off with "Lady Urmia," a 30-minute
environmental documentary by Mohammad Ehsani, an Iranian filmmaker,
about a dying lake in Iran called Urmia.
The subject of the documentary was close to my heart, because my
mother grew up in Tabriz where the lake is. Like every Persian work
I encounter, its artistic rendition accents the message. The film is
narrated in poetic words by the lake itself. The lake tells us about
its glorious past. Today, Urmia, the world's third largest salt-water
lake, has lost 70% of its waters and is dying.
I went to Urmia once for a family vacation, fifty years ago. At that
time, we enjoyed its beauty and swam in its salty waters. You could
float in the water even if you didn't know how to swim. But God forbid
if a drop of water touched your eyes!
The film shows boats, now abandoned and rusted, that we rode to
travel from one end of the lake to the other. The trip took a whole
day because the boats moved quite slowly. My two grandmothers were
with us. We made them comfortable by giving them the seats on covered
inside benches, while we rode outside under the scorching sun. Today,
there are no more boat trips, and the water is too salty for swimmers.
Catherine Yesayan with Ted Hayes
Another notable documentary at the festival was "Heal America" by
Yervand Kochar. It features advocate Ted Hayes, who has dedicated his
life to increasing sympathy and support for homeless people, and to
making their voices heard. In 1985, Hayes left the comfort of his home
and joined the homeless population in Los Angeles. The film portrays
his plucky and eccentric character, and shows him dressed in his
signature white clothing and flowing white coat. The audience pursues
the discussion of Hayes and Alec, an Armenian cynical writer. We
learn Ted's views of life through the dialog between him and Alec.
After the screening of the film, I had the chance to talk to
Hayes. He said that God and Scriptures motivated him to address the
abject poverty of the homeless population. He said, "I may have a
controversial personality, but what I say is the simple truth. We are
connected to the pain of everyone in the world." The self-proclaimed
"American Gandhi" has high hopes that he will heal America from the
wounds of slavery.
The film festival ended with a documentary about orphans of the
Armenian Genocide. It was an emotional visual portrayal of the
subsequent lives of orphans who lost their parents during the death
marches. The children were housed in schools and orphanages of
countries bordering Turkey. The never-seen pictures of orphanages
put me in awe.
All in all, this year's full schedule of films once again encompassed
the festival's core mission, which is cultural understanding and
global empathy. Kudos to Sylvia Minassian for having a vision to
hold a festival where emerging filmmakers can screen their creative
expressions. The Arpa International Film Festival audience is lucky
to enjoy and learn from a variety of new works.
I cannot finish my review of the festival without mentioning the
wonderful hospitality we received every night - a host of delicious
food. I'm already looking forward to next year!
From: Baghdasarian