Rouzbeh Akhbari

Threshold

Felix Kalmenson, Rouzbeh Akhbari

Armenuhi Burmanyan, Soma Hovhannissyan

An Armenian film director location scouts for an upcoming film on the history of the movement of ideas and contagion along the ancient trade networks which connected the historic Armenian capital of Ani to the world. Along the way he encounters the complex geopolitical realities which impact the region.

Weak Enough To Hear: A Deluge In Six Acts

Felix Kalmenson, Rouzbeh Akhbari

Giving water and land voice, this video imagines activities along the Euphrates River over the span of a day. The storyline subtly references the murder of Ahmed Jabbar Kareem Ali, a 15-year-old boy drowned by British troops in 2003 after accused of looting in one of the tributaries of the Euphrates in Southern Iraq called Shatt al-Basra. His fictional ghost anchors the narrative by raising questions about power manifested by those who control access to the river and land, its resources and history.