North Dakota Human Rights Film Festival and Summit

The Son

Expired November 19, 2021 6:00 AM
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Recognizing that the economic disparities resulting from privilege and exacerbated by the pandemic are a barrier to engagement, in 2021, NDHRFF has completely removed financial barriers to engage with the festival. As a result, access to the festival's programming is entirely free and accessible to all. All passes and individual film screenings are pay-as-you-can. As your individual situation allows, you are welcome to make a donation to the festival to help support our work.


Films are available to screen midnight, Tuesday, November 2 through midnight, Thursday, November 18.


Films in the North Dakota Human Rights Film Festival have not been rated for adult content and may include violence, nudity, language, and adult situations. Viewer discretion is advised.

An investigative documentary film into the disappearance of a prisoner of war during the first Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in 1992.

The film uses unpublished photos taken by Italian war photographer Enrico Sarsini, who covered the conflict for Russia's Ogoniok magazine. He was present with Armenian forces at their siege of a strategically-located church near Agdam that was defended by Natig Gasimov, a 19-year-old Azerbaijani volunteer.

After Gasimov surrendered in exchange for the lives of Azerbaijani hostages captured in Khojali, he was then interrogated by Armenian forces. Sarsini's photos of this interrogation show the Armenian officers and soldiers present. But once Sarsini had to leave to return to Moscow, the young Azerbaijani prisoner of war disappeared and was never heard of again.

The 46-minute documentary finds out what happened to Gasimov and who may be responsible for his disappearance. Filmed over a period of three years, director Karan Singh spoke to witnesses in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Italy and Russia in his search for the truth. He travelled to Nagorno-Karabakh, which was under Armenian control at the time, to meet local Armenian officials and to track down the church defended by Gasimov.

  • Year
    2021
  • Runtime
    46 minutes
  • Language
    Armenian, Azerbaijani, English, Russian
  • Country
    United Kingdom
  • Director
    Karan Singh
  • Screenwriter
    Karan Singh
  • Cinematographer
    Simon Stanford
  • Editor
    Andy Sowerby
  • Composer
    Douglas Black Heaton