Screening of Inna Sahakyan's "Aurora's Sunrise" + Discussion

Screening of Aurora's Sunrise

Directed by Inna Sahakyan

Followed by refreshments and a discussion between Christopher Atamian and Lila Nazemian

In conjunction with ArteEast's film program, LIMINAL TALES

Thursday, May 9th

Doors open: 6:30 pm

Screening: 7 pm

Discussion: 9 - 9:30 pm

Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice

227 E 24th St, New York, NY 10010

ArteEast is thrilled to present a screening of Inna Sahakyan's animated documentary, Aurora's Sunrise at and in partership with Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice. Join us for an intimate viewing of this film followed by refreshments and a discussion between Christopher Atamian and Lila Nazemian, Programs Director at ArteEast.

Aurora’s Sunrise is based on the true story of Aurora Mardiganian, a survivor of the Armenian genocide who, after fleeing to the U.S., starred in a silent film about her own life and experience, titled Auction of Souls (1919). The animation retells Mardiganian’s harrowing story, incorporating scenes from the 1919 film, archival footage of Mardiganian recounting her arduous journey, as well as using her memoir, Ravished Armenia, as a chronological grounding. Mardiganian’s astonishing yet horrific memories are rendered using paper cutouts and semi-rotoscoped characters crafted alongside ephemeral watercolor imagery.

LIMINAL TALES presents recent animated films that share poignant and pressing narratives from across the SWANA region and its diasporas. The program features short films by Mahmoud Hamdi, Ayçe Kartal, Sofia Al Khyari, Huda Razzak and Sarah Saidan, and a feature-length animation by Inna Sahakyan. Memory is experienced like a phenomenon in which each central character or narrator reveals how their internal psyches affect their external realities. Furthermore, the narratives are told through the lens of characters that vary in age, allowing for a nuanced storytelling of reflection and at times, disassociation. Each film has an innate ability to transport viewers into their intricate realms using a variety of visually expressive techniques.

This screening is part of ArteEast's progam LIMINAL TALES curated by Lila Nazemian and co-presented with Atamian Hovsepian Curatorial Practice and UnionDocs. The program is part of ArteEast's Unpacking the ArteArchive legacy series, which preserves and presents 20 years of film and video programming by ArteEast. A selection of shorts from the program will be screened in- person at UnionDocs on Sunday, May 12 with an introduction by the curator. For information about the UnionDocs screening on May 12, visit at uniondocs.org. The full program will be screened online on artearchive.org from May 7 - 19.

*Aurora's Sunrise was created by Bars Media Studio (Armenia) in co-production with Gebrueder Beetz Filmproduktion (Germany) & Artbox Laisvalaikio Klubas (Lithuania).

This film was made possible by the academic contribution of the Zoryan Institute and is based on its Oral History Archive. The event is organized and hosted in partnership with Bars Media and Zoryan Institute.