Best Armenian documentary movies

Ever since the war in Nagorno-Karabakh, the still disputed territory is contaminated by landmines. This documentary follows five female de-miners on their risky job.

Poetic essay about the beginning of life from labor pains and birth and about its symbolic meaning.

The story of how Aurora Mardiganian (1901-94), a survivor of the Armenian genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire (1915-17), became a Hollywood silent film star.

In the Bible, Urartu was the most ancient state on Earth. It was there where Noah’s ark stopped, and there where humanity found its salvation. The locals had a developed culture, economy, astronomy, and religious life. According to scientists’ latest discoveries, the culture of Urartu was the most advanced in the ancient world. And it had a great impact on the Persian Empire of the Achaemenids and ancient Greece. Due to a lack of research, Urartu is probably one of the most mysterious states in history. This documentary will introduce us to its unique background.

Asalif and his mother defy Ethiopia’s omnipresent modern housing development culture, by continuing to live a life characterised by proximity to nature and rootedness in community. The boy counters the ruptures in his accustomed surroundings and the threat posed by the hyena that haunts his neighbourhood by reinventing himself as a hero: as Anbessa, the lion.

Only women, children and old people live in this Armenian village, while the men work in Russia. A life with a rhythm of its own, an independent daily life marked nonetheless by exile.

Three Armenias are sketched out here, brilliantly and with delicacy, through four protagonists aspiring to fulfil their dream. There is the lift operator in a hospital who wants to travel into space, the farmer in search of a perfect wife, and the young queer couple who simply want to live out their love story… while awaiting the demonstrations and hopes of the revolution.

Told from the point of view of a rescued buffalo, this is the story of a small town trying to find itself after the Armenian-Azeri conflict. The buffalo's reception by the other farm animals reflects the distrust rife in the countries of the post-Soviet world.

A short documentary by Levon Grigoryan about the making of Parajanov's «Sayat-Nova», or «The Colour of Pomegranates».

Exercise in death - look at the terrible face of a father. To hear his hoarseness is the preparation for death.

Saroyanland is a docu-drama focusing on the journey of famous writer William Saroyan to the birthplace of his Armenian family Bitlis, in Turkey in 1964. While retaking the same road, the film aims to understand Saroyan's unique attitude to belonging, witnessing the self-discovery of a man who followed the traces of his Armenian ancestors.

When soldiers are killed, they often end up as anonymous numbers in news reports. But behind every number there is a person who leaves behind heartbroken family members. The title 1489 refers to the anonymous number of a “body of an individual missing in action.” It was the number assigned to Soghomon Vardanyan, a 21-year-old student and musician who was close to completing his mandatory military service when the conflict between Azerbaijan and his home country Armenia over Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) flared up again in September 2020.

23-year-old Tom Allen is all set for a 9–5 career in IT. Trouble is, he can’t help wondering whether there’s more to life. So Tom sets off on the ultimate adventure: cycling around the world. Despite his lack of experience, Tom cycles and camps his way across three continents, encountering a vivid cast of friends and foes. But the journey takes an unlikely detour when he falls in love with Tenny, a feisty Iranian-Armenian. When her parents forbid her from taking to the open road, Tom is faced with the ultimate dilemma: stay with Tenny or continue his adventure alone? Janapar – named after the Armenian word for journey – is an honest and life-affirming tale of finding what you’re looking for when you least expect it.

The film is a unique tribute of the director to his master. The space is empty, in the sense, there are no people there, but the items live their peculiar life until the rooster cries out. And that is be the rooster Parajanov made, God knows of what kind of improvised material at hand. It feels like the wind is a night walker here and it turns over the pages of the books. Glass breaking can be heard. The good thing is there are enough collages made of phials and luxurious tableware set fragments. The dolls sit on the frames, letting their legs hang, just like they do in daytime, but something mystical, something fateful appears in them. And Parajanov is close, built-into some other life, in epaulets or even with the people of past epochs. The lamps are switched on, even the oil stoves – everything is the way Parajanov liked. But then it is daybreak already, the rooms are filled with sunlight, and everything changes.

The film documents Charles Aznavour's first visit to his historical homeland Armenia, his concert in Yerevan and his meeting with his grandmother.