At MIA 2023, award winning Armenian producer and frontline filmmaker Vardan Hovhannisyan pitched his new doc project titled Price of History.
In August 2015, the famed archaeologist Khaled Al-Asaad was brutally murdered by ISIS in the historical site of Palmyra, after dedicating his life to preserving its ancient ruins. Hovhannisyan’s picture explores what led the scholar “to stay and protect his life’s work as ISIS advanced” while following [two of] his sons, Mohamed and Tarek, as they carry on his legacy. Amidst danger and destruction, they work to restore the artefacts and rebuild Palmyra.
Along the way, Mohamed and Tarek are joined by international experts and ordinary Syrian citizens. They defy the war that has ravaged the country and aim to demonstrate the power of co-operation and resilience. The creative team labels the doc as “a story of hope and rebirth in a war-torn land, where the spirit of Palmyra lives on.”
Al-Asaad’s incredibly brave efforts made him be known as “the guardian of Palmyra.” His tragic demise prompted this important question: how can a man risk his life to defend ancient legacies as today’s barbarians reach the gates?
In his director’s statement, Vardan Hovhannisyan explains how, in his films, he has been always fascinated “by examining the power of our choices.”
“As someone who is familiar with war – having filmed conflict in Afghanistan, South Sudan, Syria and in Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh – I have encountered countless examples of people making such monumental decisions under unimaginable pressure,” the filmmaker says.
However, the encounter with Khaled Al-Asaad’s story impressed him particularly.
“He made his decision out of love for his Palmyra, its mysteries and its magnificent historic legacy, and four our common world heritage. As an Armenian, I have been able to leverage my country’s neutrality in the Syrian war to gain unprecedented access to the Palmyra site and will use my extensive knowledge of navigating the rivalling interests and complications in war zones to bring this film to life and inspire audiences to stand for causes greater than the themselves as Khaled did,” he reveals.
Hovhannisyan, a true veteran in his field of work, kicked off his career as a freelance camera operator covering the conflicts triggered by the collapse of the Soviet Union. The helmer’s directorial debut, the doc feature A Story of People in War and Peace, was released in 2007 and depicted his journey to find his surviving trench mates from the first Nagorno-Karabakh War in the early 1990s. Thanks to this picture, he snagged the FIPRESCI prize, the Best New Documentary Filmmaker award at Tribeca and FIFDH’s Grand Prix de Geneve, among others.
Price of History is produced by Hovhannisyan’s own banner Bars Media. The project’s estimated budget is €592,500, with €54,706 already in place. It has also received backing from the National Cinema Center of Armenia.
At MIA, the team behind Price of History is looking for potential co-production partners, broadcasters and other funders.
Bars Media claims to be the country’s largest independent documentary production outfit to date. It was founded back in 1993, at a time when “former Soviet republics like Armenia had few independent outlets for frontline filmmakers.”
“We realised then that a space was needed to tell honest stories. Bars is Armenian for ‘clear, straightforward.’ We work with the region’s most talented professionals producing in-depth, narrative-driven and human-focused stories. Our home is Armenia, but we have produced films around the world,” the creative team says.
Over the course of thirty years, the company has filmed in countries such as Afghanistan, Russia, Kenya, Syria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the United States. Their productions have been aired by international networks such as the BBC, ARTE, PBS, YLE, NHK, NPO and Al Jazeera, among others.
Some of the firm’s most notable works include Inna Sahakian’s animated doc feature, Annecy-bound Aurora’s Sunrise(released in 2022 and Armenia’s Oscars hopeful), Paul Cohen and Inna Sahakyan’s Mel (who premiered last year and centred on Armenia’s most beloved weightlifter, who becomes the country’s biggest “shame” after coming out as a transgender), Inna Sahakyan and Arman Yeritsyan’s The Last Tightrope Dancer in Armenia (which premiered at IDFA in 2009 and told the story of some old popular tightrope dancers) and the aforementioned A Story of People in War and Peace.
