“Kin” International Film Festival showcases films written and directed by women around the world

by Nyree Abrahamian

Published: Wednesday December 03, 2008

"Kin" International Film Festival took place at Yerevan's famous Puppet Theater. Nyree Abrahamian

Yerevan - The Fifth Annual "Kin" International Film Festival, which showcases the talents of women directors throughout the world, took place between November 28 and December 2 in Yerevan. The festival was organized by Liza Foundation, an Armenian non­governmental organization that aims to protect women's rights and support women's participation in the social and political life of Armenia through the promotion of culture and education.

Fittingly, the festival opened just a few days after the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25, when women's rights and human rights group throughout Yerevan spoke out against domestic violence, an issue the discussion of which is gradually becoming less of a taboo in Armenia.

Fifty films were showcased at the five-day festival, from 11 different countries ranging from Iceland to Iran. "Our goal is not to limit the festival to films about women's issues," said "Kin" Festival organizer and director of Liza Foundation, Mariam Ohanyan. "We choose films based on artistic merit. What's important is to see women's viewpoints, to see the world through women's eyes."

Liza Foundation, established in 1994, had been working with women filmmakers in Armenia for several years, but they found that the largest obstacles that they faced was not making the films, but actually having them viewed. So they started the "Kin" Festival in 2004 to showcase Armenian women's films. "In that first year, the festival included only the works of Armenian filmmakers that had been produced in the past 15 years," explained Ms. Ohanyan. "But over the years, we expanded it to a more international scale." Guests at this year's festival included Melek Ozman and Elisa Batoni, from Turkey and Italy, respectively, who are both filmmakers and human rights activists. There were five jury members including Canadian Oscar-winning director, Beverly Shaffer.

 "Kin" International Film Festival was held at Yerevan's Puppet Theater and entrance was completely free of charge. There was hardly an empty seat in the house throughout the festival. I was pleasantly surprised to see a diverse audience, with men and women of all different age groups in attendance. There were even families with small children, which goes to show how important a cultural upbringing still is in Armenia. During the opening ceremony, I sat next to a father who was quietly and patiently explaining the English parts to his seven-year-old daughter. It was truly heart-warming and encouraging to see that a celebration of women in film was not considered a women-only zone, as proof of a traditionally patriarchal Armenian society becoming increasingly open-minded and of a sense of empowerment being instilled in a new generation of Armenian women.