To avoid repeated mistakes: the documentary The Will to Get Back on Your Feet Again is one-of-a-kind textbook

The documentary The Will to Get Back on Your Feet Again was made to avoid repeated mistakes and recall the ways to stand up and move forward.

During the fifty-minute documentary, we witness the story of several glorious victories of the Armenians and evidence that we were self-defeated and lost our homeland only when split apart.

The premiere ‑ not accidentally held on January 28, the day of the revival of the glorious Armenian army ‑ took place in Moscow cinema hall in Yerevan. The author and director of the documentary The Will to Get Back on Your Feet Again, Vahe Sukiasyan says that he and the late historian Artak Movsisyan had thought of shooting such a film or film series back in 2015, when there was a downward trend in national values and self-esteem.

"When the whole world, particularly Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, our neighbor Azerbaijan, laid more emphasis on their history, justifying their actions with history, our history, certain historical episodes aroused contempt and ironic smiles among us.

First, we thought of shooting a film series based on "Our Victories" four-volume edition for which we had previously requested funding from a number of institutions, including the RA Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Education and Science, but it did not work out for some reasons. The war of 2020 once again underscored the need to create such a film, as it was not the first time that the Armenian nation found itself in a situation like this", - says Vahe Sukiasyan. The film director notes that the film will have a continuation, as far as there is much to say on the topic.

As a matter of fact, this is the first time that a film script has been psychologically analyzed by psychologist Solanzh Tamamyan.

Throughout the film, famous actors tell the audience about great victories of our history, as well as tragic defeats and betrayal. Arthur Karapetyan, Honored Artist of Armenia, who tells the main story of the film, says that no one is immune to defeat: even the most powerful states have vanished from the map. "Each defeat has its own reasons ... Likewise, each victory has its reasons ... Our history is an endless cycle of victories and defeats. When did we lose and when were we able to ascertain our will to get back on our feet again despite the situation? After all, what are the keys to our survival? These are the questions we are seeking solutions to during the film, leafing through the pages of our history...  The film calls out not only to the new generation, but, in my opinion, to all those who are currently shaping our statehood ... perhaps, to all of us. To avoid repeated mistakes and to recall the ways to get back on our feet again...", - says Arthur Karapetyan.

Narek Beglaryan, Chief producer and member of the Board of Directors of ARARATBANK OJSC, recalls that months ago, when the concept of the film was submitted for discussion, the country was going and, in fact, continues to go through a painful post-war period.

"There was no mood, a complete lack of interest in doing anything, but the discussions about the film and the people involved in the film process were engaging and inspiring. We realized that we could not afford to sit back. We ended up deciding that AraratBank, which bore the name of Ararat, was obliged to undertake the funding of the film. We realized that it was not the time for falling into depression, and that if we didn’t commit to the crucial task of educating the generations, then who would?” - says Narek Beglaryan. The father of 4 children finds the creation of such educational films to be very useful.

"The documentary ‑ which mainly targeted high school children aged 13-16 ‑ has been shot within the frames of a corporate social responsibility program, from which the bank doesn’t earn profits. A pilot screening of the film will be in several schools as an alternative and, perhaps, а more effective method of presenting episodes of history. Moreover, the film is planned to be shown in Belgium, France, Los Angeles, Munich, the Czech Republic and a number of cities in the Russian Federation. After the premiere, the film will be made public on YouTube", - the press release reads.

The film features famous actors, such as Arthur Karapetyan, Davit Hakobyan, Babken Chobanyan, Nazeni Hovhannisyan, Samvel Topalyan and Ruben Muradyan. The music for the film is written by musician, pianist Gisane Palyan and guitarist Karen Arzumanyan ("EmpYraY" rock band).