2nd Yerevan Golden Apricot International Film Festival

Location	Yerevan, Armenia
Festival date	12 – 17 July 2005
Website	http://www.gaiff.am/en/

The 2nd Yerevan Golden Apricot International Film Festival was a film festival held in Yerevan, Armenia from 12–17 July 2005. Entries were submitted from 45 countries such as Russia, Argentina, the Netherlands, Afghanistan, Malaysia, Chile, Turkey, Finland, India, Israel, Iran and Canada. Following the selection, 144 films from 37 countries were included into competition and non-competition programs. Included amongst the guests and participants were some of the most highly acclaimed figures of world cinema such as Abbas Kiarostami, Krzysztof Zanussi, and Nikita Mikhalkov who were given Lifetime Achievement Awards. The main prizewinners of the 2nd Golden Apricot Festival were Alexander Sokurov, Russia, with his film The Sun (Feature Film Competition), Pirjo Honkasalo, Finland, with The 3 Rooms of Melancholia (Documentary Competition), and Arman Yeritsyan, Armenia, with Under the Open Sky (Armenian Panorama Competition).^[1]

About the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival

The Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival (GAIFF) (Armenian: «Ոսկե Ծիրան» Երևանի միջազգային կինոփառատոն) is an annual film festival held in Yerevan, Armenia.^[2] The festival was founded in 2004 with the co-operation of the “Golden Apricot” Fund for Cinema Development, the Armenian Association of Film Critics and Cinema Journalists. The GAIFF is continually supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the RA, the Ministry of Culture of the RA and the Benevolent Fund for Cultural Development.The objectives of the festival are "to present new works by the film directors and producers in Armenia and foreign cinematographers of Armenian descent and to promote creativity and originality in the area of cinema and video art".^[3]

Awards GAIFF 2005

Category	Award	Film	Director	Country
International Feature Competition	Golden Apricot for Best Feature Film	The Sun	Aleksandr Sokurov	Russia, Italy, Switzerland, France[4][5]
	Silver Apricot Special Prize for Feature Film	4	Ilya Khrzhanovsky	Russia[4][5]
		Los Muertos (The Dead)	Lisandro Alonso	Argentina, Netherlands, France[4][5]
	Jury Special Mention	Paradise Girls	Fow Pyng Hu	Netherlands[4][5]
International Documentary Competition	Golden Apricot for Best Documentary Film	3 Rooms Of Melancholia	Pirjo Honkasalo	Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany[4][5]
	Silver Apricot Special Prize for Documentary Film	Moskatchka	Annett Schutz	Latvia, Germany[4][5]
		Oh! Man	Yervant Gianikian, Angela Ricci Lucchi	Italy[4][5]
Armenian Panorama Competition	Golden Apricot for Best Armenian Film	Hammer & Flame	Von (Vahan) Pilikian	United Kingdom[4][5]
		Under the Open Sky	Arman Yeritsyan	Armenia[4][5]
		The Road	Naira Muradyan	Armenia[4][5]
	Jury Diploma	Born in Fire	Suren Ter-Grigoryan	Armenia[4][5]
		Planet Zorthian	Arno Yeretzian, Sevag Vrej, Harout Arakelian, Lisa Tchakmakian	United States[4][5]
		One Balloon	Aram Hekinian, Aruna Naimji	United States[4][5]
		One Fine Morning (Un Beau Matin)	Serge Avedikian	France[4][5]
Parajanov’s Thaler - Lifetime Achievement Award			Abbas Kiarostami	Iran[4][5]
			Krzysztof Zanussi	Poland[4][5]
			Nikita Mikhalkov	Russia[4][5]
Prize of the Armenian Filmmakers Union for the Best Director		Long Gone (Documentary)	Jack Cahil	United States[4][5]
Prizes of the Armenian Association of Film Critics and Cinema Journalists for the Best Feature Film		My Father is an Engineer	Robert Guediguian	France[4][5]
		Waiting for the Clouds	Yesim Ustaoglu	Turkey[4][5]
Hrant Matevosyan Fund Prix for the Best Script in Armenian Panorama		The Road	Naira Muradyan	Armenia[4][5]