YEREVAN, JULY 18, NOYAN TAPAN. It was probably the first case in the history of the Golden Apricot (Vokse Tsiran) International Film Festival that the cinema hall was full during the showing of an Armenian documentary. Moscow cinema's small 30-seat hall, on July 17, was not enough for the spectators of young director Gor Baghdasarian's film The Third Rider. The most part of spectators remained standing near the hall doors, therefore festival organizers fixed an additional showing day, July 18, already in the 300-seat hall of H. Tumanian Puppet Theater. The film's first showing took place on July 16 at the hall of the Union of Theatrical Figures of Armenia and also proceeded in a full hall. According to Gor Baghdasarian, he takes part in the festival for the second time: last year the Supper Time film received special prize of jury. The Third Rider film is presented at festival's extra-contest program. It has been shot with the support of Golden Apricot's Cinematography Development Foundation and is aimed at liquidating a vicious and negative phenomenon in Armenian reality, intolerance. The script of this documentary lasting an hour and 10 minutes develops through interviews held among people of various strata and age: the subject of talks includes issues from sexual differences to locality, political, and other issues, when a group does not tolerate another one, for instance, Armenian students do not tolerate Persian students studying at Armenian higher educational institutions and take their places, a Gyumri dweller says about a Yerevan dweller that they live better but they not. The young director is convinced that the film is purposeful and makes an attempt to show what unpredictable consequences intolerance and hatred becoming equal to confrontation can have.

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