Country Focus
Amerikatsi / Ամերիկացի
Screening Schedule
Screening 1
- 16th December
- 9.30 am
- audi 4
Screening 2
- 19th December
- 6.00 pm
- nila
Michael A. Goorjian
Director's bio
Michael A. Goorjian
Michael A. Goorjian is an accomplished American actor, filmmaker, and writer, known for his versatile talents in the entertainment industry. Born on February 4, 1971, in San Francisco, California, he gained widespread recognition for his role as Justin in the television series "Party of Five" and for his performance in the cult classic film "SLC Punk!". Goorjian's directorial work includes the Armenian film "Amerikatsi" (2022), which he also wrote, edited, and starred in. The film, a comedy-drama, tells the story of an Armenian-American who repatriates to the Armenian SSR after World War II and ends up in a Soviet prison. "Amerikatsi" premiered at the Woodstock Film Festival in 2022, where it won the Best Narrative Feature award1. The film has been praised for its hopeful and affirming tone, and it was selected as Armenia's entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.
Synopsis
In 1948, decades after fleeing Armenia to the US as a child, Charlie returns in the hopes of finding a connection to his roots, but what he finds instead is a country crushed under Soviet rule. After being unjustly imprisoned, Charlie falls into despair, until he discovers that he can see into a nearby apartment from his cell window - the home of a prison guard.
Details of Cast
Michael A. Goorjian, Hovik Keuchkerian, Mikhail Trukhin, Nelly Uvarova, Narine Grigoryan, Jean-Pierre Nshanian, Aram Karakhanyan, Lernik Harutyunyan
Details of Crew
Editors Michael A. Goorjian Mike Selemon Cinematography Ghasem Ebrahimian Composer Andranik Berberyan Sound Neil Fazzari, Arsen Hakobyan, Ben Kruse, John Moros, Tommy Stang
Producer Details
Michael A. Goorjian, Robert Patrick Malkassian, Arman Nshanian, Sol Tryon, Ani Vorskanyan, Arman Melkonyan
Writer Details
Michael A. Goorjian
Stills
Films in this category
2013
Parajanov Scandal
2022
Gate to Heaven
2016
Lost in Armenia
1996
Labyrinth
2006
The Lighthouse
2020
Should the Wind Drop
Categories
- International Competition (14)
- Homage (4)
- World Cinema (63)
- Indian Cinema Now (7)
- Kaleidoscope (6)
- Malayalam Cinema Today (12)
- Restored Classics (7)
- Jury Films (5)
- Opening Film (1)
- Spirit of Cinema (1)
- Ann Hui: Chronicler of the Outliers (5)
- The Female Gaze (7)
- Signatures In Motion (3)
- Midnight Cinema (3)
- Festival Favourites (13)
- Viva el Cine: Latin American Films (5)
- Refracted Realities : The Existential Mindscapes of Hong Sang-soo (4)
- Chiaroscuro : Retrospective of Madhu Ambat (4)
- Celebrating Shabana Azmi (5)
- Centennial Tribute (3)
