The Hidden Heritage of Yerevan: Documentary That Resonates Deeply at International Film Festivals

Documentaries by CBC Azerbaijani television channel have repeatedly received recognition at prestigious international film festivals representing major highlights in the country’s TV industry and indicating its undeniable achievements.

The Hidden Heritage of Yerevan documentary featuring the Azerbaijani history of the city immediately attracted the attention of both viewers and industry professionals. Therefore, it is no coincidence that it was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award at the prestigious IndieX Film Fest in Los Angeles. Moreover, this short documentary produced by Vugar Khalilov, Head of CBC TV channel, became a finalist at the Around International Film Festival in Amsterdam.

The Around International Film Festival (ARFF) is an independent annual event showcasing feature films, documentaries and short films competing for IMDb awards. The jury includes such notable figures as actor Danny Glover, winner of four Grammy Awards, screenwriter Jim Raijel who worked on the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, and Steven Castor who was responsible for special effects in Conan the Barbarian and The Chronicles of Narnia.

CBC TV channel notes that such great success came as a surprise to them considering that documentaries are virtually churned out with limited resources thanks to a combination of professionalism and enthusiasm of their creative teams.

The Hidden Heritage of Yerevan documentary that resonated deeply at international film festivals highlights, objectively and in detail, the terrifying picture of the destruction of Azerbaijani cultural heritage in Yerevan. The film is based on an article by American journalist Robert Cullen published in The New Yorker in 1991, where issue of the demolition of Azerbaijani historical sites in Armenia, including the destruction of Demirbulag Mosque, was for the first time raised at international level.

The investigation conducted as part of making the documentary shows that of all Yerevan mosques only one has survived – the Azerbaijani Blue Mosque which is now presented by the Armenian side as a Persian mosque. The rest of them are either completely destroyed or reduced to ruins. The same fate befell other historical and architectural masterpieces. For instance, Azerbaijani ruler Panah Khan’s mansion is in disrepair, and the Sardar Palace was destroyed to make room for a winery. Today’s threats are further aggravated by the plans of French and American investors to demolish Yerevan’s historical districts to build hotels and entertainment complexes there, which can completely erase the last traces of Azerbaijani culture in the city.

The filmmakers have presented ample evidence of systematic and consistent destruction of Azerbaijani historical heritage by Armenian authorities including archival documents and photographs, interviews with local residents who remember Azerbaijani historical and cultural landmarks, as well as modern footage of the sites where they used to be located.

International recognition of the film at prestigious film festivals took the issue of preserving cultural heritage in areas affected by ethnic conflicts to a fundamentally new level. The destruction of cultural landmarks violates international conventions for the protection thereof urging active intervention by the international community. The Hidden Heritage of Yerevan documentary raises key issues concerning the requirement to preserve historical memory, develop intercultural dialog and international responsibility for the protection of endangered heritage.

The world should know the truth and make active efforts to raise the issue of holding Armenian authorities liable for the destruction of unique landmarks that constitute historical and cultural heritage of the Azerbaijani people, all the more so as it is a huge loss for the entire world culture.

We should commend CBC TV channel’s creative team and its Director General Vugar Khalilov, personally, for their skill and professionalism, honesty and objectivity, commitment to modern journalism criteria, and wish them new talented works in documentary film genre awaited by global audiences.

Watch the documentary