Before coming to Armenia, I tried to learn as much about the country as possible. For me, the best way to learn about a place is through art that highlights it. Armenian cinema does not get the flowers it deserves. Here is a short list of Armenian movies and TV shows that will teach you about Armenian history and culture.

Amerikatsi

Amerikatsi was the first movie I watched about Armenia, and it was partly filmed in the city I currently live in. The best way I can describe it is like Armenian Life is Beautiful meets Rear Window (in a way). It’s charming, a little corny, tragic. This movie does a great way of showing how the soviet occupation impacted Armenia, and how people found ways to live and preserve their cultural identity in an authoritarian government.

Mimino

Mimino is a well known Soviet comedy movie that follows a Georgian small aircraft pilot’s move to Moscow to become a airline pilot. There he meets and an Armenian truck driver mistaken for an endocrinologist who constantly gets in his way. The movie starts Vakhtang Kikabidze and Frunzik Mkrtchyan, two of the most well-known actors from their respective countries. This movie’s sense of humor is hilarious, and I often go back to rewatch scenes from it, especially the courtroom scene. The full movie can be found on Youtube.

Grandma’s Tattoos

Grandma’s Tattoos is a short documentary that I was recommended to watch during pre-service training. It follows Suzanne Khardalian as she traces what happened to her grandmother during the 1915 Armenian Genocide. This film highlights the stories of young women during the genocide, what they endured and how they had to survive. Understanding the present in Armenia means understanding the past. This documentary shows the remaining impact of the genocide in present day Armenia, and in the diaspora.

We are our Mountains

We are our Mountains is one of the most well known Armenian comedy movies. The movie follows an intvestigation into a dispute over a sheep slaughtered by a group of shepards in the Armenian mountains. The film is a sharp satire dissection of the integration of rural communities into Soviet bureacracy. The full movie can be found on Youtube. For those learning Armenian, I recommend you watch this movie, conversational phrases are translated in the closed captions.

The Color of Pomegranates

The Color of Pomegranates is the most well known piece of Armenian cinema. It’s not a movie with a typical narrative arc, it’s a collection of scenes and images that tell the story of the Armenian poet and musician Sayat-Nova. The best way to describe it is poetry visualized, the director, Parajanov, works to create visuals that evoke a strong emotional portrait. It’s a beautiful movie that will give you a strong sense of Armenian visual identity. There is a museum in Yerevan dedicated to the director of the movie, and its one of my favorites in Armenia.

Karkin Haxordum

Karkin Haxordum is the most popular sketch show in Armenia. It reminded me of the American sketch show, Mr. Show. Every Armenian knows this show, and can repeat jokes and quotes from it. Karkin Haxordum is a great way to understand Armenian humor. It aired in the 90s, during a time of major political instability and economic downturn for Armenia. The show often satirized Armenian culture and made fun of the general dissatisfaction of this time period. Unfortunately for my English speakers reading this there is no translation available. The jokes are funnier in Armenian, anyway. For any future volunteers, this is a great show to watch if you want to improve your Armenian and sound conversational.

Honorable Mention: Little Women

Did you know there’s an Armenian in Great Gerwig’s Little Women? I didn’t until I re-watched the movie this fall. The character only appears for 10 seconds. It was a shock to hear Armenian in one of my favorite movies of all time. If you’re wondering what he says, he asks Jo to dance by saying “ari gexecik parenq” “come and dance beautiful!”