THE VALLEY
A film Project by NARINE MKRTCHYAN and ARSEN AZATYAN
THE VALLEY
Synopsis
During World War I, Heinrich Schulze, the military medic of the German Army, at the same time with his work also takes photos of the construction process of Berlin-Baghdad railway in the eastern part of the Ottoman Turkey, but witnesses a totally different reality – the Armenian Genocide.
There is probably no need to explain why we, Armenian filmmakers, have decided to touch this topic – the Armenian Genocide.
Had it happened to other nations, they would have done the same; moreover, the Jews have already touched the topic of their Holocaust for many times, and the world is well acquainted with that terrible crime. But however surprising it may seem to the world, if more attention had been paid to the Armenian Genocide, the Jewish Holocaust probably wouldn’t have happened…
Contrary to the other few approaches to this topic, our film project has a new accent through those who committed the crime and the protagonist.
The prototype of the protagonist was the great German humanist, publicist, and writer Armin Wegner, who, being at that time a military doctor in the imperial army, in fact witnessed all those crimes and took photographs of many scenes. And the Imperial Germany that was allied with the Ottoman Turkey during World War I, provided with weapons, supported, and helped the Turks take advantage of the reconstruction of Berlin-Baghdad railway and realize their old dream – expel the Armenians from their historical territories (because they were afraid of the idea of the Armenian Independence) choosing the worst way of expulsion – holocaust, slaughter, extermination.
Another central character in the film is Archimandrite Komitas, the founder of the Armenian New Classical Music, who does rehearsals with his choir. His happy secular songs are performed contrary to the cruel story.
And maybe this fact wouldn’t be so important if the members of the same choir (more than 300 people) wouldn’t have become victims of the Genocide themselves, including Archimandrite Komitas. And their presence gives a special meaning to the film – the 3000-year-old Armenian Culture which the Genocide committed by the Turks couldn’t destroy. Culture is eternal.
In order not to make a historical excursus, let us just say that our film does not belong to the historical genre; it is a psychological drama and we are trying to go deeper into the tragedy of an individual. Moreover, the film will have a certain philosophical view of tragedy as in great Friedrich Nietzsche’s “Thus Spoke Zarathustra”.
We are deeply assured that the more subtle and the more personal the film is, the more impressive our accents will be.
CAST & CREW
THE VALLEY
Narine Mkrtchyan, Arsen Azatyan
World premiere
Armenia
2020
DCP
120′
Armenian
Narine Mkrtchyan, Arsen Azatyan
Aysor-Plus Film Productions
Aysor-Plus Film Productions
Narine Mkrtchyan, Arsen Azatyan
Arthur Ustyan
Nariné Mkrtchyan, Arsen Azatyan
ST. Komitas, Franz Schubert
Narine Mkrtchyan, Arsen Azatyan
Armen Sahakyan
Sound mixer