Garden Dwelling by Tina Bastajian (Turkey/USA, 2004, 29 min, Beta SP)

Synopsis:

This oblique travel diary, recounting four Armenians’ visit to eastern Turkey in 2003, covers not their daily itinerary and the big sights, but the spaces in between: the awkward translations, the mystifying exchanges, the unspoken tensions that still linger across a closed border. A graceful, nuanced treatment of the filmmakers’ ambivalent relationship to their historic homeland. In English, Armenian, Turkish, Arabic and French with English subtitles.

with Clapper and They Were Here

Post-screening panel discussion with filmmaker Tina Bastajian and Rasha Salti (Ashkal-Alwan, Beirut)

Filmmaker's Bio:

Tina Bastajian is a Los Angeles based film/video artist whose work explores notions of "otherness" in unexpected places; finding this space, between the margins, the frame and the translation informs both her narrative and visual strategies. Her award winning works include: Jagadakeer ... between the near & east (2001) Yellow Aria (1988), Pinched Cheeks and Slurs in a Language that Avoids Her (1995) and Remembering Fatima: A Study on Duration (2000), and currently she is working on a feature documentary project.

Festivals and Awards:

• Golden Apricot International Film Festival, Yerevan, Armenia, 2004
• ARPA International Film Festival, Los Angeles, 2004
• Middle East Studies Association Film Festival/Conference, San Francisco, 2004
• NY Armenian Film Festival, Millennium Film Workshop, 2004

Print Source Information:

Tina Bastajian
Email: KINOstudio@aol.com