J.M. Hagopian, made Armenian genocide films
LOS ANGELES — J. Michael Hagopian, an acclaimed filmmaker whose 70 documentaries on the Armenian genocide won more than 160 awards, died Dec. 10 at his home in Thousand Oaks. Dr. Hagopian, a survivor of the genocide that killed an estimated 1.5 million people in the Ottoman-Turk Empire from 1915 to 1923, was 97.
He filmed nearly 400 interviews of survivors and witnesses to the genocide from around the world, and made 17 documentaries about Armenian heritage, culture, and history.
“Mr. Hagopian’s documentary films on the Armenian genocide are a path-breaking work that will help inform generations to come of the facts of the first genocide of the last century,’’ said Representative Adam Schiff, a California Democrat who screened some of the films on Capitol Hill and worked with the filmmaker on a variety of local Armenian issues. “He will be deeply missed.’’
Dr. Hagopian received two Emmy nominations in 1976 for “The Forgotten Genocide.’’ His last film in a trilogy on the genocide, “The River Ran Red,’’ won Best International Historical Documentary at the Amnesty International Film Festival in November and at the New York International Film & Video Festival in 2009.
“Through his life and career, Dr. J. Michael Hagopian is proof that a single person can change humankind’s understanding of itself,’’ Los Angeles city councilman Paul Krekorian said in remarks made several months ago at a commemoration for the filmmaker. “He is proof that we can rise above intolerance and ensure future generations are armed with the information needed to combat bigotry in all forms.’’
Dr. Hagopian founded the Armenian Film Foundation in 1979, a Thousand Oaks-based nonprofit dedicated to documenting Armenian heritage.
“Michael Hagopian was the Simon Wiesenthal of the Armenian people,’’ said Jerry Papazian, vice chairman of the organization. “He left a huge legacy. He was a revered figure in the world of human rights.’’
In his private life, Dr. Hagopian was an avid gardener, tending about 80 fruit trees in his backyard, pressing olives, and making preserves. Dr. Hagopian leaves his wife and four children.