Biography

The penetration that Hollywood achieves in Africa and Asia is huge - it's almost like surrogate immigration. Clearly, the values of America and the West are spread in particular by movies and television. I'm not sure that that's such a good thing.

Film today is more and more concentrated on the amusement park element. If a writer can attach an actor or a producer who has some clout, then you can arm yourself. Otherwise, a script simply becomes a road map to attract money and talent.

[on The Promise (2016)] The story of the Armenian Genocide has been suppressed by successive Turkish governments, and we were well aware of that, but we wanted to go after it anyway. At the beginning, we tried to fly under the radar as much as we could so that we didn't have to deal with outside pressure. So we shot in Spain and Portugal and Malta. We were crucially aware of what we were trying to do, so we said, let's get this thing made and put it out there, and then have the political debate and the conversation that we need to have. I talked to a couple of Turkish journalists about this, and some of them really liked the film, but not enough to go out there and put their name behind it. (...) I wanted to make something that would appeal to audiences with no particular interest in the war or the conflict, that would stand on its own, because this is one of the most contentious subjects out there. Even now, they're locking up journalists who speak up on the matter. There was an article in the New York Times recently about how paranoid the government and the people are in Turkey now. They have the sense that they're being attacked by Western culture. (...) There's no doubt the Armenian community will embrace this film. And there's no doubt it questions the entire Turkish narrative. I'm sure it won't be shown in Turkey. At least, I'd be really surprised. [2016]

[on financing The Promise (2016)] We were fully backed by the Kerkorian Foundation. And we had an Armenian-American production company. So we obviously had their support throughout the process. But, you know, Queen Elizabeth funded Shakespeare, and no one calls "Richard III" a piece of propaganda. There's a difference between a perception of a story and the veracity of a story. We never wanted to dictate perception, just tell the truth. [2016]

[on The Promise (2016) and the Armenian Genocide] There is the political influence of the Turkish government which has, over the course of a century, managed to stifle and repress and deny this event. And today their strategic importance is greater than ever and this is a touchstone for them. Any time that the Armenian Genocide is mentioned, whether it be the centenary or a film like this, there is immediately a barrage of denial. But this is not a question ... the vast majority of historical study has determined that this was a planned attempt to wipe out the Armenian nation. And we need to get beyond that diversionary discussion to why! Why did it happen and how do we move on from that and how do we reconcile these two nations again? ... Let's bring the discussion out in the open. [2016]