Cannes Critics’ Week selects four Armenian directors for Next Step Studio
Armik Israyelyan, Raffi Movsisyan, Sona Khachatryan and Naira Sargsyan will develop short films in Yerevan for Cannes in 2027.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
3 min read
Cannes Critics’ Week has named four Armenian filmmakers for the 2027 edition of its Next Step Studio program, putting Yerevan on deck for a fresh batch of films bound for the Croisette.
The selected directors are Armik Israyelyan, Raffi Movsisyan, Sona Khachatryan and Naira Sargsyan, Critics’ Week announced. Next year’s program will center on Armenia, with support from the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Republic of Armenia.
Each Armenian director will be matched with an international filmmaker. The four pairs will then develop and shoot one film apiece in Yerevan in March 2027, according to Critics’ Week.
The films will be made in Armenian and produced with Armenian casts and crews. Critics’ Week said the finished works are set to premiere at Cannes in 2027.
Who made the cut
Israyelyan comes to the program after studying at the American University of Armenia and taking part in the KinoEyes European Film Masters program. Before directing, she worked as a videographer and media creator at UCRAFT.
Her short film “The List” recently won best short film at the Unica Annual Film Festival. She has also taken part in Erasmus+ film projects, according to Critics’ Week.
Movsisyan graduated from the Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinema in 2012 with a master’s focus in film studies. From 2012 to 2017, he coordinated Armenian film programs at the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival.
He later served, from 2018 to 2019, as an adviser to Armenia’s culture minister. Since 2018, he has coordinated film programs at the Tumo Center for Creative Technologies.
Movsisyan also wrote and hosted “Unseen Cinema” on Channel One and created and hosted programs for Bun TV. His debut short, “Homecoming,” premiered in competition at the Krakow International Film Festival in 2021. He has produced three animated films.
Khachatryan holds a master’s degree in Turkish Studies from Sabanci University in Turkey, as well as bachelor’s and master’s degrees in International Relations from Yerevan State University. Critics’ Week said she spent more than 10 years working on Armenian-Turkish civil society projects.
Her experience also includes work as a writing consultant at the Math and Writing Center of the American University of Armenia. Since 2022, she has served on the executive board of the European Writing Centers Association.
Sargsyan graduated from the feature film directing department at the Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinematography in 2017. She previously pursued a Ph.D. at the same institute from 2007 to 2010 and published articles on cinema language and film structure.
Her thesis examined sound in film structure. She worked as an assistant director in Armenian public television and as casting assistant to Maria Saakyan on the 2006 film “Mayak.”
Sargsyan made her debut as writer-director with the 2020 short “General Cleaning.” Her second short, “The Eternal Red,” was released in 2025.
How the filmmakers were chosen
Critics’ Week said Next Step Studio received 25 applications after an open call in Armenia. A shortlist of 12 projects followed.
The shortlisted filmmakers were interviewed July 16 at the House of Cinema in Yerevan by a selection committee made up of Juliette Canon, short film coordinator and Next Step coordinator at Critics’ Week, French producer Dominique Welinski and Armenian producer Artyom Baghdasaryan.
The international pairings will be announced Aug. 19 during the CineLink closing ceremony at the Sarajevo Film Festival. This year’s Next Step Studio is focused on Indonesia.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.