VARDAN HOVHANNISYAN

 From 1988 to 1991, Vardan Hovhannisyan was a freelance cameraman and covered the hot regions and ethnic conflicts related to the post-Soviet transition for the international news. He was twice captured as a prisoner of war during the Kharabagh war. In 1993 he established Bars Media Documentary Film Studio, one of the first independent film companies in Armenia, which specializes in making documentaries about human stories, culture, history and social issues. He has also been the executive producer of documentaries for organizations such as the United Nations, USAID, OSCE, the British Council and OXFAM. His film A Story of People in War and Peace has won over 20 international awards. Recently he produced the documentary The Last Tightrope Dancer in Armenia, an international co-production with NHK, ITVS, YLE, SVT, TVP, and TV Estonia. Vardan is a certified sports-plane pilot and first-class parachutist, experienced in aerial film shooting.