Atom Egoyan

Birthday: 19 July 1960, Cairo, Egypt

Birth Name: Atom Yeghoyan

Height: 170 cm

Born in Egypt to Armenian parents, he was raised in Western Canada. Both his parents were painters, and he planned to be a playwright, but after making a short film, he became hooked on telling stories visually. Returned to ethnic "homeland" when he filmed Calendar (1993) in Armenia. Won attention at the Sundance Film Festival for earlier work, then broke through critically and commercially with Exotica (1994). Afterwards, The Sweet Hereafter (1997) led him to receive two Academy Award nominations, and then Chloe (2009) became his biggest moneymaker ever (after the film's DVD/Blu-ray release). Show less «

[on Remember (2015)] What I respond to - as a grandchild of survivors of a genocide that hasn't been...Show more »

[on Remember (2015)] What I respond to - as a grandchild of survivors of a genocide that hasn't been recognized - I can really respond to that feeling of rage. It's something that is still living for these people. Max will not get satisfaction. For him it's still about the magnitude of that loss. We cannot allow ourselves to become inured or callused to horror, to the ability of people to abstract other human beings if sanctioned by the State. We were telling this story at a time when we still have survivors and perpetrators in our midst, and we were very aware of that. [2016] Show less «

I started in theater and I wanted to write plays, but I never really found an original voice as a pl...Show more »

I started in theater and I wanted to write plays, but I never really found an original voice as a playwright. I still write plays. I still do theater and opera, but the moment I started making films, which I have to say I started in college because the college dramatic society turned down one of my plays, and out of spite, I went to the film club and said, "Okay, I'll make it as a movie." But the moment I held that camera, it just felt like "Oh, this is another character. This is someone watching the drama." It was always a character for me. I think in the really early films, it literally is the missing person. It's the person watching. So, it's what I feel most natural doing. But I love all these other worlds. I'm about to go into rehearsals for an opera. I love that world as well. [2014] Show less «

[on The Captive (2014)] We're sort of inside this eternal present and it becomes a torture machine, ...Show more »

[on The Captive (2014)] We're sort of inside this eternal present and it becomes a torture machine, where people are playing scenes over and over in their mind.. In terms of the mood, it feels like the world we live in. That's what I'm trying to do with this film - to create an expression of the space that we live in. I understand that it will create a wide variety of criticisms. Show less «

Sometimes you get the opportunity to make a film that actually is touching or explores a part of his...Show more »

Sometimes you get the opportunity to make a film that actually is touching or explores a part of history that is uncharted. With Ararat (2002), the transmission of trauma reverberates through four generations. How the pain of that is, and the echoes are, felt 100 years later. [2016] Show less «

My first film, Next of Kin (1984), was made 15 years ago for $ 20.000, my second [Family Viewing (19...Show more »

My first film, Next of Kin (1984), was made 15 years ago for $ 20.000, my second [Family Viewing (1987)] for $ 100.000 and then Speaking Parts (1989) was $ 500.000. I was never aware of commercial considerations, and each film found enough of an audience to justify its budget. I'm more aware of those things now... [Nov.1998] Show less «

I think with all directors there are ideas that recur, at least for the ones that have creative cont...Show more »

I think with all directors there are ideas that recur, at least for the ones that have creative control of their films. Show less «

[on Ararat (2002)] I don't think this is a film about the Armenian Genocide. This is a film about th...Show more »

[on Ararat (2002)] I don't think this is a film about the Armenian Genocide. This is a film about the denial of it and the consequences of it generations after the event. (...) This is a movie that is about people negotiating history and what it means to carry this history and what it means to resolve and try and find some way of coming to terms with it. [2004] Show less «

[on Exotica (1994)] To me, the obvious definition of the exotic is something outside our immediate e...Show more »

[on Exotica (1994)] To me, the obvious definition of the exotic is something outside our immediate experience. But ultimately, what really drives the film is the exoticism that we feel towards our own experience, that point at which our own memory, and our own relationship to the things that are closest to us become exotic. Show less «

I started my career, thankfully maybe, with a first feature that I'm really proud of, that got some ...Show more »

I started my career, thankfully maybe, with a first feature that I'm really proud of, that got some really dismissive reviews at the time. I realized I had to have a really thick skin if I wanted to pursue this. You can't be vulnerable. It's just the nature of it. [2014] Show less «

[on the online sabotage attempts by Turkish denialists after the premiere of the Armenian Genocide e...Show more »

[on the online sabotage attempts by Turkish denialists after the premiere of the Armenian Genocide epic The Promise (2016)] It's going to be a tough ride. The denialist lobby is very well-organized. [2016] Show less «

[on the Turkish reaction to Ararat (2002)] All through the making of this film I received threats bu...Show more »

[on the Turkish reaction to Ararat (2002)] All through the making of this film I received threats but I didn't bother taking any of them seriously and I suppose I have the convenience of being here [in Canada]. (...) The real enemy of the Turkish people in this situation has been a government which has suppressed this [the Armenian Genocide and his film] from its own population. [2004] Show less «

[on targeted down-voting on IMDB against The Promise (2016) and other films about the Armenian Genoc...Show more »

[on targeted down-voting on IMDB against The Promise (2016) and other films about the Armenian Genocide] Especially for people who are not familiar with the subject matter...you're going to look for the rating. You can't downplay it. It probably does have an effect. (...) You just have to have a really thick skin. You just have to realize that the good thing about films is that they have a long life. You hope that at a certain point the dust settles down and then people actually see the movie. [2017] Show less «

There have been reviews that have profoundly affected me, because someone so deeply connected to the...Show more »

There have been reviews that have profoundly affected me, because someone so deeply connected to the film. Those are so gratifying. [2014] Show less «

This idea of clarity and that people should know at all times what's going on is obviously very attr...Show more »

This idea of clarity and that people should know at all times what's going on is obviously very attractive from a marketing perspective, but I think it would completely eviscerate the power of what these movies are about... We are still discussing what the opening sequence in Persona (1966) might mean and the wealth of possibilities that can be read into this piece of work. I believe that's why it endures. Show less «

I'm just really grateful I had this career to make these films. Whether or not particular films conn...Show more »

I'm just really grateful I had this career to make these films. Whether or not particular films connect, I'm proud of the body of work that I've done. [2014] Show less «

Atom Egoyan

Atom Egoyan's FILMOGRAPHY

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