GOR BAGHDASARIAN: GOAL OF THE THIRD RIDER DOCUMENTARY IS TO PRESENT UNPREDICTABLE CONSEQUENCES OF INTOLERANCE
NOYAN TAPAN
JULY 18
It was probably the first case in the history of the Golden Apricot
(Vokse Tsiran) International Film Festival that the cinema hall was
full during the showing of an Armenian documentary. Moscow cinema’s
small 30-seat hall, on July 17, was not enough for the spectators
of young director Gor Baghdasarian’s film The Third Rider. The most
part of spectators remained standing near the hall doors, therefore
festival organizers fixed an additional showing day, July 18, already
in the 300-seat hall of H. Tumanian Puppet Theater. The film’s first
showing took place on July 16 at the hall of the Union of Theatrical
Figures of Armenia and also proceeded in a full hall.
According to Gor Baghdasarian, he takes part in the festival for the
second time: last year the Supper Time film received special prize of
jury. The Third Rider film is presented at festival’s extra-contest
program. It has been shot with the support of Golden Apricot’s
Cinematography Development Foundation and is aimed at liquidating a
vicious and negative phenomenon in Armenian reality, intolerance.
The script of this documentary lasting an hour and 10 minutes develops
through interviews held among people of various strata and age: the
subject of talks includes issues from sexual differences to locality,
political, and other issues, when a group does not tolerate another
one, for instance, Armenian students do not tolerate Persian students
studying at Armenian higher educational institutions and take their
places, a Gyumri dweller says about a Yerevan dweller that they live
better but they not.
The young director is convinced that the film is purposeful and makes
an attempt to show what unpredictable consequences intolerance and
hatred becoming equal to confrontation can have.