Heritage Department Mission Statement
During its nearly hundred years of existence, Armenian cinema has traversed a complex path riddled with many conflicts and crises. As a result, it has formed a multi-layered legacy, which is valuable precisely because of its internal contradictions, polarizations and sharp transitions. Despite its relatively small scale, this heritage still awaits its proper evaluation and study.
Acknowledging the importance of cinema as a key factor in the formation of high culture and modern national identity, it is necessary to radically revise the current formats of preservation, presentation and distribution of Armenian film heritage. This is why the Cinema Foundation of Armenia established its own Heritage Department in June 2020, using the following guidelines as its primary agenda:
- The study, cataloging and coordination of various film collections kept in Armenia.
- Creation of an online research database of Armenian cinema in Armenian and English languages.
- Establishing a professional film restoration and digitization laboratory.
- Creating new legislative policies and projects aimed at collecting and preserving Armenian cinema created after Armenia's independence in 1991.
- Facilitating the propagation of Armenian film heritage through various projects, including: creation of English subtitles for classic Armenian films, educational manuals for school courses, organization and participation in international conferences and festivals, exhibitions presenting the history of Armenian cinema, publication of literature dedicated to the history of Armenian cinema and the work of Armenian filmmakers, etc.
- Initiating long-term collaborations and networks with international archives and institutions devoted to preservation of film history.
- Supporting educational and critical programs dedicated to Armenian cinema on television, as well as online platforms.
- Acquiring high-quality digital copies of Armenian film negatives stored in the Russian state film archives, for the purposes of restoration and preservation.
- Distribution of restored versions of Armenian films on the festival circuit, online streaming services, broadcast networks and other commercial channels.
The stated objectives are aimed at fundamentally transforming the public perceptions of the Armenian moving image heritage both locally and internationally, as well as facilitating more conducive state policies on film heritage. The purpose of these initiatives is to create a new foundational model for the continuous appreciation, preservation and propagation of Armenian film heritage.
