Archive

In Focus

While maintaining the fundamental objectives of GAIFF - encouragement of networking and cultural exchange across borders, and preservation of the cultural diversity of the region - the festival added a new section to its activities for the year of 2019. In Focus brought a specific topic/region/idea/concept to the spotlight, opening a new discourse on its cinematic establishment and further prospects of development.
In Focus 2019 covered Poland. In cooperation with Adam Mickiewicz Institute, the program organised various events to bring Polish culture closer. In addition to panel discussions, talks and training, the program included screenings of contemporary and classic films.

CineThink

CineThink Trainings was a year-round program developed by the Golden Apricot International Film Festival (GAIFF) and the “Think” training initiative to support the Armenian film industry. It included workshops, trainings, and pitching sessions for emerging filmmakers.
The core program was a ten-session workshop for ten first- or second-time directors and screenwriters working on feature-length projects, helping them improve their presentation and pitching skills. Participants later presented their projects to local and international investors, distributors, and festival programmers.
The project also organized professional trainings on project development and film packaging, and promoted contemporary Armenian cinema through regional screenings, master classes, and discussions across the country.

Youth Cinewave

Youth CineWave was a public platform, launched by young filmmakers of Armenia, designed for emerging talents who work on short films. The main purpose of the program was to arrange master classes, idea, and project development workshops, and provide an opportunity for young Armenian filmmakers to cultivate a professional network. Through these workshops, young filmmakers gained essential skills for pitching and presenting ideas, as well as attaining the necessary funding to share their stories.

Armenia-Turkey Cinema Platform

Established in 2009 by Golden Apricot Fund for Cinema Development (GAFCD) and Anadolu Kultur (Turkey), the Armenia-Turkey Cinema Platform (ATCP) was intended to facilitate co-production between Armenia and Turkey. It served as a working platform for film professionals from both countries. ATCP was dedicated to transnational and multilateral cultural cooperation, professional training, and knowledge exchange.
From the inception of ATCP till 2019, the platform had a full-fledged network with more than 250 participants from both countries, and it brought to life over 20 documentary and short film projects, facilitated more than 200 inter-state exchange visits, and produced and distributed the first Armenian-Turkish cinema Almanac. Films from ATCP have been screened in different international film festivals and cultural centres, attracting broad audiences from around the world.