The “Echo of Artdocfest” festival was canceled in Yerevan after Mansky’s post about Baku

The Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Film announced on social networks the cancellation of the documentary film festival “Echo of Artdocfest”, which was supposed to be held in the capital of Armenia on November 23-26. The institute clarified that the reason for canceling the festival was the post of its president, director Vitaly Mansky (recognized as foreign agents in the Russian Federation) on Facebook (the social network belongs to Meta, which is recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation) about his trip to Victory Day in Baku.

“This is the second time I have been to Victory Day in Azerbaijan. The first one was so impressive that now he came to film the festivities and around them for a new film,” Mr. Mansky wrote on his Facebook page. The post was later deleted, and the director published a new post explaining his words about the trip to Baku.

“I deleted the post and will try to clarify. Indeed, the word impressed could be read as approval. But it means that what I saw in Baku made a strong emotional impression on me. And what he saw convinces us that the war is not over, despite any Victory Days. And for Armenia, which is in such a neighborhood, the future never ceases to be tragic,” wrote Mr. Mansky.

The director added that he plans to come to Yerevan and continue “a difficult conversation about a world that is doomed to war.” He stated that the film festival program also includes a film about the war in Artsakh called “Nina’s Children.”

Mr. Mansky also said that in Baku he filmed an episode for a large anti-war film, which is being filmed in different countries of the world. He stated that local authorities invited him to Azerbaijan, but they did not pay him and his film crew anything, and the filming took place with “considerable difficulties.”

The international festival of author’s documentary films “Artdocfest” has been held annually in Moscow since 2007. Since 2014, it has also been held in St. Petersburg and Riga (Latvia). Festival in April 2022 stopped his work in Russia after Vitaly Mansky was doused with paint at the entrance to the Moscow Oktyabr cinema, where films were shown. In 2022, the Echo of Artdocfest festival was held in Yerevan.

Russian documentarian Vitaly Mansky has not lived in Russia since 2014. In September 2022, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation announced he is on the federal wanted list. A criminal case was opened against the director for libel (Part 2 of Article 128.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) for words about theft at the Moscow International Film Festival. In June 2023, Mr. Mansky was announced in Russia as a foreign agent.

On November 8, a solemn parade was held in Baku on the occasion of Azerbaijan’s victory in the second Karabakh war (September 27, 2020 – November 10, 2020). Army units and cadets of military schools marched along the central streets of the capital, accompanied by a military band. On the same day, a military parade was also held in Khakenidi, the former Stepanakert, which was the capital of the defunct Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

More information about ceremonial events in Azerbaijan – “Azerbaijan appeared in full dress”.

Erdni Kagaltynov