{"product_id":"there-was-there-was-not","title":"There Was There Was Not","description":"\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: start;\"\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"color: #ff0000;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ca title=\"Community Screenings Form\" href=\"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/pages\/host-a-screening\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0133\/2562\/files\/WebsiteButton_3bb924f4-b7af-47a7-98d9-8c2765d50eb0_480x480.jpg?v=1718641924\" style=\"margin-bottom: 6px; float: start;\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDirected by:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Emily Mkrtichian\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReleased:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2025 (educational)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eYear of Production:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2024\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRunning Time: \u003c\/strong\u003e94 min\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEnglish\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSubtitle Options:\u003c\/strong\u003e English Closed Captions\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSubjects: \u003c\/strong\u003e Women's Studies, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e      \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000;\"\u003e        \u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/S_W-39h6s0A?si=NilbaI47flgBxSwO\" title=\"YouTube video player\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e         \u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"UTF-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn 2018, Emily Mkrtichian initially set out to make a film about the daily lives and hopes of women in Artsakh – an autonomous, disputed ethnically Armenian territory between Azerbaijan and Armenia with an enduring legacy of conflict. She followed a minesweeper, an aspiring politician, a women’s rights activist, and a judo champion as they navigated a precarious peace while building their lives and communities. In 2020, when Azerbaijan launched a surprise attack and war broke out again, Mkrtichian continued filming as shelling began around her, witnessing her subjects’ worlds and dreams immediately transform. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe documentary evolved from an observational meditation on strength into an urgent portrayal of survival, capturing the personal and cultural impacts of a homeland at risk of loss, and the power of story to keep it alive. THERE WAS, THERE WAS NOT was directed, produced, and shot by Emily Mkrtichian in her feature documentary debut. The documentary features Siranush Sargsyan, Svetlana Harutunyan, Gayane Hambardzumyan, Sosè Balasanyan as its main subjects.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e                   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"container mx-auto my-8\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"mt-4 md:w-7\/12 mx-auto text-center font-body text-base\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFIPRESCI PRIZE (INTERNATIONAL CRITICS AWARD) WINNER - GOLDEN APRICOT IFF 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMAR DEL PLATA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDOC NYC, NYC PREMIERE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e                   \u003cbr\u003e\"\u003cspan\u003eMkrtichian often depicts heaven in a series of still life shots to document quotidian household objects and activities. War is not characterized with the usual sensational images so if you are afraid of seeing dead bodies, hearing accounts of sexual violence or other traumatizing events, you can set those worries aside. It is a quiet movie. The most that Mkrtichian offers is shaky cams and some explosions. Instead, she focuses on the separation of people from the people and activities that they love.\u003c\/span\u003e\" — Sarah G. Vincent\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003e        \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e        \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the filmmakers\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"C9DxTc\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e            \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmily Mkrtichian is a filmmaker and interdisciplinary artist from a displaced, diasporic family who explores alternative archives and visionary futures of the SWANA region. Her films include the first Armenian sci-fi film, Transmission, which premiered at the BFI Flare Film Festival, and the feature documentary THERE WAS, THERE WAS NOT, which premiered at True\/False and won several awards, including the FIPRESCI Prize at the Golden Apricot Film Festival and the Audience Award and Jury Award at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival. In addition to her films, Emily's multimedia installation Luys i Luso, created in collaboration with Tigran Hamasyan, has been exhibited in museums, concert halls, and public spaces around the globe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmily has been an \u003cem\u003eLA Arts Activation Fund\u003c\/em\u003e recipient, A \u003cem\u003eLocarno Film Festival\u003c\/em\u003e Open Doors fellow, a \u003cem\u003eUnionDocs Summer Lab \u003c\/em\u003eFellow, and participated in the \u003cem\u003eTorino Film Creative Producing Lab\u003c\/em\u003e. She is a recipient of the \u003cem\u003e2025 Creative Capital award\u003c\/em\u003e, a \u003cem\u003eDocX Fellow at Duke University\u003c\/em\u003e, and an alumni of the \u003cem\u003eSundance Institute\u003c\/em\u003e. She currently splits her time between the US and Armenia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e        \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/pages\/screenings\"\u003eHost a Screening and Book the Filmmaker at your Event\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gmail_quote\"\u003e\n\u003cblockquote class=\"gmail_quote\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-loaded=\"true\" data-page-number=\"1\" id=\"pageContainer1\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-canvas-width=\"745.4456470588237\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv title=\"Page 2\" class=\"page\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"layoutArea\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"column\"\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Emily Mkrtichian","offers":[{"title":"University \u0026 College DVD (with PPR*)","offer_id":48622640628020,"sku":"TWTW-U","price":375.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Digital Site License","offer_id":48622640660788,"sku":"TWTW-D","price":550.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"DVD + DSL (w\/ PPR)","offer_id":48622640693556,"sku":"TWTW-DD","price":625.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0133\/2562\/files\/TWTNposter.jpg?v=1749845036","url":"https:\/\/www.collectiveeye.org\/products\/there-was-there-was-not","provider":"Collective Eye Films","version":"1.0","type":"link"}