BARED MARONIAN’S "ORPHANS OF THE GENOCIDE" DOCUMENTARY IN THE WORKS
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Monday May 17, 2010
Turkish feminist and nationalist Halide Edip (1885-1964) for a time
ran the Armenian orphanage near Beirut. Univ. of Texas
Hollywood, Calif. – By the end of WWI over 150,000 Armenian children
were left parentless as a direct result of the Armenian Genocide
perpetrated by the Ottoman Authorities. Near East Relief commissioned
by the US Congress catered to over 132,000 Armenian orphans alone.
"Orphans of the Genocide" is a short film produced by the Armenoid
Team, which debuted on April 24, 2010 at the commemoration of the
95th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide in Hollywood, Florida.
This short documentary includes a feature interview by Maurice Missak
Kelechian, whose findings unveiled the secrets of an orphanage in
Antoura near Beirut, Lebanon where 1,000 Armenian Genocide Orphans
were being Turkified.
Mr. Keleshian’s research prompted a recent article by award winning
journalist Robert Fisk of The Independent newspaper of London.
"Jemal Pasha, one of the architects of the 1915 genocide, and – alas
– Turkey’s first feminist, Halide Edip Adivar, helped to run this
orphanage of terror in which Armenian children were systematically
deprived of their Armenian identity and given new Turkish names,
forced to become Muslims and beaten savagely if they were heard to
speak Armenian," Mr. Fisk wrote in his article.
The documentary also includes testimonials from children of Armenian
Genocide orphans.
"We already have embarked on expanding Orphans of the Genocide to a
one hour documentary" says Bared Maronian, the director of the piece.
"Our goal is to expose stories like the Antoura Orphanage that have
taken place during the Armenian Genocide and make them known to the
public." states producer Bedo Der-Bedrossian.
"The information on Armenian orphans was overwhelming. However
the material was scattered, so we decided to launch a website:
, which is still under construction." concludes
co-producer Paul Andonian.
The sixty minute version of the documentary will include an exclusive
interview by Robert Fisk of The Independent.
Orphans of the Genocide is directed by four time Emmy Award winning
filmmaker Bared Maronian, produced by Bedo Der-Bedrossian and Paul
Andonian.
The Armenoid Team has produced a number of award winning
documentaries. A link to a seven minute trailer of Orphans of the
Genocide is available at
(Editor ‘s warning: video includes some material of graphic nature!)