By Paul Vartan Sookiasian
Public broadcasters across the country have been airing a piece of Armenia this past month, with the debut of Andrew Goldberg’s latest documentary “Armenia, My Home.” It is one part travelogue, one part recollection during which noted Armenian-Americans recount their experiences growing up Armenian and connections to their homeland. The sweeping drone shots displaying the grandeur of the Armenian landscape create a feast for the eyes, backed by sounds of Armenian sacred and folk music. CivilNet spoke with Goldberg about his many years of experience sharing the Armenian experience with a national American audience, what’s required to have more such opportunities, and what they can do for Armenia.
The experiences and insights shared by the Armenian-American cultural figures in “Armenia, My Home” will instantly be familiar to many viewers raised within that diasporan context. They describe a time when Armenia to them was represented not by a country on a map, but by visits to their grandmother’s house.
As comedian, artist and writer Vahe Berberian says in the film, though he and his family had never been able to see Armenia for themselves when he was young, “we idealized it in our minds.” Yet with independence, Armenia was no longer the stuff of romanticized longing but an actual country, with all the difficulties and necessary work which come with that. Paradoxically, it was a place which had some similarities to what being Armenian meant to them, and yet stark differences as well.
The speakers’ experiences are representative of the wider diaspora’s recalibration of Armenia from a place of dreams to reality. The documentary then shifts to highlighting some of Armenia’s most beautiful gems such as Garni, Geghart, Lake Sevan, Tatev, and Etchmiadzin, seen from above through stunning drone photography. Also interspersed throughout are vintage photos and film clips, showing how things once were alongside the views of today. This adds further color to the journey and creates an effect of jumping through time, a perfect backdrop to the speakers discussing their memories.
Those interviewed are familiar to many in the Armenian-American community. Goldberg, who wrote, produced, and directed the film, chose the speakers in line with a certain vision for the film:
“This was not to be a scholarly piece but an experiential one. I wanted people who can describe things in a relatable way with excitement, enthusiasm, and color.”
Among the speakers, Eric Bogosian is a writer and actor, Peter Balakian a poet, Dottie Bengoian a storyteller, Chris Bohjalian a novelist, Salpi Ghazarian, co-founder of CivilNet, and Michael Aram an artist.
Goldberg continued: “I thought that people who are used to taking Armenian ideas and being creative with them would drive this to create a kind of story arc that viewers could most relate to.” The documentary also brings exposure to Armenian culture and identity, which is still largely unknown in the United States.
“Just consider the power of what it can do,” said Goldberg. “When was the last time you saw Armenians on television? This is a great thing here.”
Goldberg first started telling Armenian stories by chance. He was hired by a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) TV station to produce a documentary “The Armenian-Americans” (2000), because as a history major in university, he was the only filmmaker interviewed who knew anything about Armenia. Soon another opportunity appeared when an Armenian philanthropist commissioned “The Armenians: A Story of Survival” (2001), and then Goldberg fundraised to create a third film on Armenia’s 3000 year cultural history, “Images of the Armenian Spirit” (2003).
Goldberg’s “The Armenian Genocide” (2006) gave the subject unprecedented treatment, with a star-studded cast of narrators and more than a bit of international controversy. Concern over potential Turkish government anger is likely what led to PBS authorizing a panel discussion which aired after the documentary to debate the Armenian Genocide, and while Goldberg disagreed with that decision, it had an unintended positive consequence.
“Not only were those arguing for the Turkish thesis unable to present compelling evidence, it also generated an enormous amount of press, which ended up working in favor of those who are in pursuit of the truth. In fact, the Turkish government still has me and a section attacking the show on their website to this day, which I’m proud of, because I told the truth – the Armenian Genocide is historical fact.”
While Goldberg took a break from Armenian stories to work on other projects, Armenia came up in a conversation with PBS last year as a subject which had been successful in the past and one they were ready to do again. In addition, Armenia is an underreported story and there is such a connection between the people and their homeland to be told. It took just a year from that initial talk to the airing of the final product, and as Goldberg explained.
“The change in technology with high resolution cameras and drone technology allowed the chance to present Armenia in a much more exciting way.” He also notes that “what really makes a place a place is how people respond and relate to it, so he decided to structure it with the commentators talking about their trips to a location while covering it.”
While this film is an important milestone, Goldberg thinks there is much more telling of the Armenian story which needs to be done.
“I don’t understand why so few Armenian films are made. Public Television only has the capacity to support a few of these, it’s a niche, and so you need to find other ways to get the story out to a widespread audience.”
He referred to recent examples which do just that, Inna Sahakyan and Bars Media’s “Aurora’s Sunrise” and Michael Goorjian’s “Amerikatsi.” Armenian culture was even the subject of a recent episode of the Disney cartoon Mickey Mouse Funhouse.
Still, he encourages aiming even higher: “there should be 10 such films a year, 10 other people making Armenian films inside and outside the community. You know, filmmakers like myself in the Jewish community make a lot of Holocaust films and Jewish films and antisemitism films, we have dozens of Jewish film festivals. But that’s not because there are so many of us. Let’s say there are six million Armenians worldwide- there are more than 15 million Jews. So we’re looking at two and a half times the population, but we’ve got 100 times the documentaries, why is that? There are a lot of creative Armenians out there who would like to do these kinds of things, but they need to find philanthropic support.”
Goldberg notes how such work can resonate beyond the creative sphere. “Beyond films, more philanthropy for the arts can bring Armenian subjects to the public in a high-profile way, such as museum exhibits all over the country like the one put on by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. Everywhere you go, people should be asking who these fascinating people the Armenians are. That kind of awareness is also how you move the needle on things like American financial aid and defense support to Armenia.”
He recounted how one prominent Armenian philanthropist, having seen a documentary on Greek-Americans on PBS, called her local PBS station and offered to pay for one on Armenian-Americans. “That’s visionary stuff, and it wasn’t done for the donor’s name, but out of a desire to further the cause, recognizing the power of art, culture, and media. I think those are important tools, and it’s the use of words and ideas that really shape our future.”
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