PRESS RELEASE
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES/ARMENIA
Contact Naira Altounyan/Program Officer at CRS/Armenia:
374 (10) 26 33 89 / 26 32 18
naltounyan@eme.crs.org, 38 Arabkir street, 2/2 house

Golden Apricot International Film Festival to Showcase
Two Documentaries on Armenian-Azerbaijani Conflict

Yerevan ` This year’s Golden Apricot International Film Festival, to be
held during July 10-15 in Yerevan, will feature two new documentary
films dedicated to helping build peace and dialogue between Armenia and
Azerbaijan.

Sharing the title `In that Distant Neighboring Village,’ the films
document the shattered lives and lingering recovery of two villages `
one Armenian, one Azerbaijani ` on either side of the common border. The
films feature profiles of and interviews with various town residents,
who reminisce about life before the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict,
discuss the war’s impact, and often express an impassioned desire for
reconciliation.

The films were co-funded by Catholic Relief Services/Armenia (CRS), the
Armenian Round Table Foundation (ARTF), and Inter-Church Organization
for Cooperation Development (ICCO) of the Netherlands. CRS and ARTF
regularly collaborate through grass-roots programs that promote
socio-economic development and peace-building in the South Caucasus. The
documentaries were produced within the framework of a joint CRS-ARTF
initiative, designed to foster mutual understanding and dialogue between
Armenians and Azerbaijanis.

The Armenian version of `In that Distant Neighboring Village,’ which
documents life in the village of Aygepar, was produced by Shoghakat TV;
the Azerbaijani version, documenting the neighboring village of
Alibeyli, was produced by Azerbaijan’s Internews organization.

`The desire for co-existence, as expressed by the long-suffering
residents of Aygepar and Alibeyli, is not just a romantic idea,’ said
Sona Hamalian, Head of CRS/Armenia. `Armenians and Azerbaijanis alike,
especially in border towns, have a profound appreciation for the value
of economic collaboration. Peace and the re-establishment of trust are
crucial for their survival, for the eventual prosperity of their
villages. They know they’ll need more than a tenuous ceasefire to regain
normalcy, to freely interact with their neighbors.’

`In that Distant Neighboring Village,’ featuring both documentaries,
will have two screenings during the Golden Apricot International Film
Festival: on July 11, at 6 PM, at the Moscow Theater (Abovyan Street);
and on July 12, at 6 PM, at the Nairi Theater (Mashtots Avenue). Each
screening will be followed by a Q & A session with the Shoghakat TV
production team and with CRS and ARTF representatives.

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