Category Archives: Arts & Culture
Watch ‘The Hidden Map’ on PBS in Florida This Weekend
Florida Armenians is pleased to announce that PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) will air the Armenian story THE HIDDEN MAP, giving all of us the rare opportunity not only to journey into the forbidden past, but to bring the continuing story to life for millions of viewers.
The film will premiere in Florida (Jacksonville, Ft. Myers-Naples, Miami, Tampa, and West Palm Beach) beginning on Saturday, June 11, 2022 and Sunday, June 12, 2022. See local listings below for viewing in your area.
THE HIDDEN MAP takes viewers beneath the surface of modern-day Turkey, where the forbidden Armenian past has been awaiting discovery for more than a century. The story comes to life as Ani Hovannisian, an American-Armenian granddaughter of genocide survivors, ventures to their lost ancestral homeland in search of long-buried truths. A chance encounter with a Scottish explorer, Steven Sim, leads to a joint odyssey unearthing sacred relics, silenced voices, daring resilience and the hidden map. The result is a story of discovery, heartbreak and hope that belongs to all of humanity.
Produced by Storydoc Productions, THE HIDDEN MAP is directed, produced, written and edited by Ani Hovannisian.
PBS made the historic decision to distribute this independent film to more than 300 stations nationwide both because it recognizes the power of the film and because during its Southern California debut viewers responded with an outpouring of support.
With its national release, viewers who pledge even a nominal amount in support of PBS’s broadcasts of THE HIDDEN MAP will not only help secure additional airings on a national stage, but will receive unique gifts, including exclusive hand-crocheted dolls made by women in Goris, Armenia– some of them displaced citizens of Artsakh who are supported each time a viewer requests a doll.
This is an unprecedented moment in history when we can all easily help to bring this human story of heartbreak, discovery and hope into the homes and consciousness of millions of Americans, while touching the lives of Armenians today.
ABOUT
An American-Armenian granddaughter of exiled genocide survivors dares to venture to their lost ancestral homeland to uncover long-buried truths. During her travels, she meets a lone Scottish explorer who had stumbled upon this mysterious land of secrets years earlier. Together the duo digs beneath the surface of modern-day Turkey, discovering sacred relics, silenced voices, fearless resilience, and the hidden map.
The documentary premiered nationwide on NBCLX in April 2021, coinciding with the U.S.’ official recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Overwhelming audience and critical response prompted nine encore broadcasts. It was also the top broadcast on PBS SoCal and KCET in December, ushering in more screenings in 2022. THE HIDDEN MAP has earned more than a dozen honors at international film festivals and was considered for three 2021 Primetime Emmys.
More information is available at thehiddenmap.com and pbs.org.
Books & Books and Miami Book Fair Present ‘An Evening with Peter Balakian’
MIAMI, FL – Miami retailer Books & Books and the Miami Book Fair will present ‘An Evening with Peter Balakian’ discussing his latest book “No Sign” (University of Chicago Press, $20) on Friday, April 29, 2022 at 7:30 PM ET at Books and Books, 265 Aragon Avenue, Coral Gables, FL 33134.
About the Book:
“No Sign” is a new poetry collection from Peter Balakian, author of “Ozone Journal,” and winner of the Pulitzer Prize.
In these poems, Peter Balakian wrestles with national and global cultural and political realities, including challenges for the human species amid planetary transmutation and the impact of mass violence on the self and culture. At the collection’s heart is “No Sign,” another in Balakian’s series of long-form poems, following “A-Train/Ziggurat/Elegy” and “Ozone Journal,” which appeared in his previous two collections. In this dialogical multi-sectioned poem, an estranged couple encounters each other, after years, on the cliffs of the New Jersey Palisades. The dialogue that ensues reveals the evolution of a kaleidoscopic memory spanning decades, reflecting on the geological history of Earth and the climate crisis, the film Hiroshima Mon Amour, the Vietnam War, a visionary encounter with the George Washington Bridge, and the enduring power of love.
Whether meditating on the sensuality of fruits and vegetables, the COVID-19 pandemic, the trauma and memory of the Armenian Genocide, James Baldwin in France, or Arshile Gorky in New York City, Balakian’s layered, elliptical language, wired phrases, and shifting tempos engage both life’s harshness and beauty and define his inventive and distinctive style.
About the Author:
PETER BALAKIAN is the author of eight books of poems including “Ozone Journal,” which won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for poetry, and “Ziggurat,” both published by the University of Chicago Press. His memoir “Black Dog of Fate” won the PEN/Albrand Award and was a New York Times notable book, and “The Burning Tigris” won the Raphael Lemkin Prize and was a New York Times bestseller and New York Times notable book. He is Donald M. and Constance H. Rebar Professor of the Humanities in the Department of English at Colgate University.
Florida Armenians 