When you make films, you’d think your job is done once the editing is over, and the story is out and ready for screening. This was how I felt when Whispering Memories first met with the Turkish audience thanks to a national TV broadcast on CNN Turk, and the first international festival screening at the Golden Apricot in Yerevan, Armenia in July 2008. This is how we started telling the story of a tiny and hidden village in the Taurus mountains of Turkey to the outside world. A documentary film about ‘Armenian Converts’ and how they survived 1915 by remaining in this small village in Anatolia.
Soon after my visit to Yerevan, I received an email through my producer M.Caner Alper. He’d also included in his note that I should have a close look at it because the sender was mentioning that his father was from Geben, the Turkish village where we’d filmed ‘Whispering Memories’.
I started reading the email word by word and spotted the name Ghazaros Kerjilian as its sender. I first went into silence and then I could not avoid crying because ‘Kerjili’ was the only Armenian name in Whispering Memories, villagers of Geben remembered clearly. They’d told us the story of how he left Geben as the last person from the Armenian community. And now, I was receiving an email from someone carrying the same name and he was saying that his father was from Geben and that he always wanted to visit Geben until he died, only four years ago at the age of 97.
Our correspondence continued with mutual excitement and passion until Ghazaros came out to Toronto from upstate New York to meet me and my producer Caner at the Pomegranate International Film Festival. There, we sat next to each other while we watched -once again- how villagers described in detail his grandfather leaving Geben in 1915. Ghazaros had also brought his father’s picture to Toronto for us to see. As soon as we caught a glimpse of his father’s face, we both said to each other that he has a peculiar similarity to the Old Imam in Whispering Memories, a first hand witness of 1915.
Over the winter months, we slowly and cautiously planned Ghazaros’ journey to his fathers village in the Taurus Mountains. Yasemin, the Convert girl in Whispering Memories and her family warmheartedly welcomed our intentions and offered us their hospitality without any conditions. In Geben, we would stay at their home and be witness to the reunion of “Turks” and “Armenians” of Geben for the first time after almost a century since their separation. Furthermore, there could also be family relations to be unearthed between “Turks” and “Armenians”...
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Pictures leave a life-long mark in our memories regardless of how important movies are in modern times. This is why we decided to document Ghazaros’ journey by taking continuously shot still photographs. Over 6.000 pictures formed the basis of a 14 minute long documentary film enriched by interviews recorded in the field. Italian composer Paolo Poti prepared the soundtrack based on the famous Armenian song “Cilicia” in a classical approach. This is how our short documentary “Talking Pictures” came into life with its international debut to be taken place at the ARPA International Film Festival between 23-25 October 2009 in Los Angeles.
Herewith, we’d like to thank you for your interest in Whispering Memories and our evolving documentary story. The teaser of Talking Pictures can be found in Youtube, Vimeo and Facebook; related links are provided below. Information about screenings at upcoming festivals and digital platforms will be constantly updated via our blog, Facebook group, and the official site of CAM Film.
Please help us in sharing our story with the world.
Thank you.
Mehmet Binay / M.Caner Alper
8 October 2009
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For more information:
Talking Pictures is the photographic journey of Ghazaros Kerjilian to his paternal home in the Taurus mountain region in Turkey and his search for the lost great uncle in 1915.
A short documentary by Mehmet BINAY / M.Caner ALPER
Post-production by Jasmin GUSO
Photography by Huseyin ONAN
Music by Paolo POTI
Narrated by Mehmet BINAY
© CAM Film 2009
TALKING PICTURES
Teaser on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k25jBGcljhQ
Teaser on Vimeo:
Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=30514440135
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