'Lost and Found in Armenia' to premier around Christmas

Lost and Found In Armenia," the first-ever all Armenian-financed major motion picture, starring Jamie Kennedy and Angela Sarafyan wrapped up shooting on location in Armenia. The films producers indicated that the film will premiere in the US around Christmastime, Asbarez.com reported.

The film, directed by Gor Kirakosian and produced by Maral Djerejian (Sideways) and Valerie McCaffrey (American History X, Neo Ned), is a bilingual feature length film and the first production by Red Tie, an independent film production company based in Los Angeles.

"Both of them [Kennedy and Sarafyan] fell in love with Armenia and Armenians. I must say that for Hollywood actors the filming conditions were different and after a difficult first week, they fell in love with Armenians and their hospitality," said Djerejian.

Jamie Kennedy stars as the son of a U.S. Senator who goes missing while vacationing in Turkey. He finds himself in a small village in Armenia where a beautiful young woman, played by Angela Sarafyan, joins him in his adventures and misadventures along the way.

The producers also announced that Armenia-based actors Mikael Poghosyan and Hrant Tokhatyan were also part of the film.

"There are many talented actors in Armenia, there are many experts but they lack the experience of working with modern cinema. The problem will be solved if people engage in film production in Armenia," said Djerejian, adding that a single film could greatly promote general knowledge about Armenia worldwide.

"We did not make 'Lost and Found in Armenia' for Armenian audience only. The film is based on a universal story that is applicable everywhere in the world. It was merely our wish to make it in Armenia, said McCaffrey.

"We could have shot the film elsewhere due to the lack of technical materials in Armenia, but since the producers of the film are Armenians, the director, Gor Kirakosian, is also Armenian, we wanted to make it here," added McCaffrey.

"We have huge potential four boosting the film industry in Armenia. A great number of Armenians work in Hollywood nowadays, but most Armenians still don't specialize in film because parents consider medicine, law and economics as serious professions for their children, forgetting that we have produced many famous writers and artists," explained McCaffrey.

"When I visited the Armenian Genocide Museum, I got astonished that so many renowned people have touched upon and condemned the Genocide. Nobody actually knows about that, meanwhile each of those stories could make a splendid script," said McCaffrey, adding that it would have the same effect as Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List" had.