Anarekli

(Reflection)
by Giorgi Mrevlishvili
11’, Germany, Georgia, 2010

Ushguli is a small village in the Caucasian region of Svaneti, in northwestern Georgia. It is one of the most beautiful corners of the country, far from the modern digital and “electronic” world. With its 2.200 metres in altitude, it is one of the highest-elevation populated villages in Europe, and for this reason became a Unesco World Heritage Site. In August, 2009, in Ushguli, a special outdoor screening of a film was organized for the village residents. The huge film screen, placed in the midst of the green valley, evoked the inhabitants wonder. But what happens when, for a moment, they forget their public and social masks? What does the human face express when it reflects the images in motion? Cinema itself is a reflection. Anarekli attempts to “reflect the reflection”. The faces of the inhabitants of Ushguli, adults and children alike, enchanted in front of the screen, once again show us the cinema.

Giorgi Mrevlishvili
Born in Tbilisi in 1983, he earned a degree in humanities and international journalism from the Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. After participating in numerous workshops on documentary film directing, he worked as a journalist and director for various television stations. In 2009, with the film Anarekli, he participated in the prestigious Berlinale Talent Campus and the Berlin Today Award.