Ex-Fresnan Connecting Armenians To Hollywood

EX-FRESNAN CONNECTING ARMENIANS TO HOLLYWOOD
by Rick Bentley

Fresno Bee
October 26, 2011 Wednesday
California

Roosevelt High School graduate Valerie McCaffrey has been given The
Armenian American Network Humanitarian Award for her work in the
World Children’s Transplant Fund Armenia, a nonprofit organization
dedicated to the development of pediatric transplantation.

The award came just a few weeks after the producer/filmmaker completed
shooting her latest movie, “Lost & Found in Armenia,” that was filmed
almost entirely in Armenia.

Both the work for the Transplant Fund and shooting the movie have
given McCaffrey the opportunity to visit Armenia multiple times.

McCaffrey, whose maiden name is Boolootian, turned down other jobs
because she was determined to shoot a movie in Armenia as a way of
bringing attention to the country and spark more interest in the
arts there.

“I’m Armenian and I don’t see enough Armenians in the arts,” she says.

“The Armenian community loves when their children grow up to be doctors
or lawyers and all that stuff. I would love to see more opportunities
for the Armenian community to get more involved in the media and
the arts.

“They talk about the genocide but they are not doing anything to tell
the story of it. That’s how you communicate ideas to the masses. We
are talented people so we need to use that.”

McCaffrey got a first-hand look at the Armenian people while shooting
the movie, which stars Jamie Kennedy and Angela Sarafyan. Most of it
was filmed in remote areas of the country where no movie has ever been
shot. She was impressed with the generosity the Armenian people showed.

“They had never seen anything like a film crew in their entire life,”
McCaffrey says. “These people, who I wish I could cast every single
one of them because of their character faces, would just sit and
watch us work. One villager told me that it was boring after we left.”

The locals embraced cast and crew. McCaffrey was always amazed how
families – who appeared to have nothing – would put out a spread
of food and candy when any member of the cast or crew would visit
their homes.

She loves that she got to pay respect to her heritage while creating
a product she suspects will bring a lot of attention to the country.

McCaffrey – who graduated from California State University, Long Beach
– understands the power of the arts. She has worked in TV and film
since 1988 on projects such as “The Gong Show,” “Babe,” “Hard Candy,”
“American History X,” “Dark City” and “Problem Child.”

She currently is putting the finishing touches on a documentary
about cancer treatment that she hopes will be shown at the Sundance
Film Festival. She also is getting ready to start the feature film
“Pure Life.”

McCaffrey hasn’t forgotten her Fresno roots. When she’s not busy with
a new film or humanitarian project, she tries to get back home to visit
family and friends. And, she would like to film a production here.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress