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1489, dir. Shoghakat Vardanyan, Armenia 2023, Armenian with English subtitles, 76 min.
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The first time director’s younger brother Soghomon, 21, a musician, was close to completing his mandatory military service when the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) War broke out on September 27, 2020. Soghomon disappeared in the war zone without a trace on the 7th day.
Coping with despair, Vardanyan started documenting her family's daily ordeal with her phone. She continued to do so for another 2 years, as the family searched for her brother. In 2021, there was a DNA match with bones found on the battlefield after the war, and in 2022 they finally received the official notice of his death. Soghomon’s remains were coded 1489 – “Body of individual missing in action.” Although bitter, this number provided closure, which many families still lack.
Winner of International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA).
Coping with despair, Vardanyan started documenting her family's daily ordeal with her phone. She continued to do so for another 2 years, as the family searched for her brother. In 2021, there was a DNA match with bones found on the battlefield after the war, and in 2022 they finally received the official notice of his death. Soghomon’s remains were coded 1489 – “Body of individual missing in action.” Although bitter, this number provided closure, which many families still lack.
Winner of International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA).
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02:00 pm
Sat, 07 Dec 2024
Cinema 1
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