When My Sorrow Died: The Legend of Armen Ra and the Theremin
A stylised look at the life of Armen Ra, the eccentric Iranian theremin player. Ra, nephew of an opera singer and son of a world citizen, grows up in a house full of women. This blesses him with a feminine, artistic and cultural upbringing. During a holiday in the United States, revolution breaks out in his home country. He is forced to attend school in Boston, where he is seriously bullied. Wanting to get away as soon as possible, he moves to New York where he ends up in the world of drag. Here, drink and drugs finally take their toll. Then he discovers the theremin.
Filmmaker Robert Nazar Arjoyan allows the extravagant Ra to tell his life story in a dreamy way through interviews, archive and concert footage. The magical, haunting sound of the theremin provides an appropriate soundtrack to melancholy, glorious and intense moments in the film. A dynamic documentary about the trials and tribulations of a wounded artist.
Film details
- Country of production
- USA
- Year
- 2014
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2015
- Length
- 85"
- Medium/Format
- BluRay
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