THE SHEEP
Project by AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN
THE SHEEP
Short Synopsis
A truck stops at the curb. Jesus, Judas and Buddha catch the Sheep. On the way, they see Muhama. Jesus suggests that she join them and tells her that they are going to a bank for a loan. The Sheep sees a dream in which Jesus, Judas, Buddha and Muhama deliver monologues about their personal issues, though It expects to hear about God. They spent the night at a motel. Jesus and Muhama make love. Muhama opens up to him, saying that Sanchez (her boyfriend) forced her into prostitution for drugs. The following morning Sanchez arrives and threatens Muhama with a gun. He hears sirens and panics, at which point Jesus punches him, causing his gun to fall. Sanchez pushes Muhama into his car and leaves. Jesus places the gun in his pocket. On the way Jesus watches the police seize Sanchez and Muhama. They reach the city. Judas takes the Sheep to the market and sell it. In the bank a black employee says that the manager can’t meet with them. The security guards escorting them out of the bank. Jesus takes out the gun and runs back into the bank. The Sheep is ruminating in the back of another truck. The truck moves and shots are heard.
How does society react to a pointless attack, to violence without any clear motive? The community in the Armenian city of Gyumri faces this conundrum when a Russian soldier kills seven members of a family. Nariné Mkrtchyan and Arsen Azatyan use shots of the real protests following the slaughter but fictionalise the true event. Their soldier is called Ivan, just like the fool from Russian folklore, who they have interwoven into their narrative in a children’s show.
The idea of the film started with a simple question, what if Jesus, Judas, Buddha and Muhammad found themselves in our modern society, on a road trip in a little old truck. Who would they choose to be the “driver”? Would they argue about that question? And if they found a sheep, could they decide what they were going to do with it without arguing?
CAST & CREW
THE SHEEP
AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN
World premiere
Armenia
2020
DCP
110’
Armenian
AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN
Aysor-Plus Film Productions
Aysor-Plus Film Productions
AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN
Arthur Ustyan
AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN
AREG AZATYAN and SHOGHIK TADEVOSYAN