In a gesture of symbolic support, the European Film Academy has granted membership to Andro Chichinadze, the young Georgian movie star arrested during the pro-European protests in Georgia on December 4.
Chichinadze is currently behind bars in Gidani Prison in Tbilisi. He has been charged with being part of an organised criminal team, “organising, leading, participating in, and publicly calling for violent actions,” and is facing a sentence of six to nine years.
“Andro Chichinadze is being wrongly and illegally punished for his political views and active participation in legal protests. The court’s decision also aims to instil fear in society, suggesting that participation in protests could lead to similar unjust and unlawful prosecution. The European Film Academy condemns these actions, will continue monitoring the case of Andro Chichinadze, and continue to call for his release. Clearly the justice system under the Georgian Dream party is being used to punish protesters simply to set an example for others,” Mike Downey OBE, Chair of the European Film Academy, told Screen.
The 28-year-old Chichinadze is a well-known face in Georgian film and theatre with screen credits including Cold Clouds, Nina and The Resting Samurai. At the time of his arrest, he had been preparing to head to Mount Kilimanjaro for his new project, climbing documentary, Journey Of Transformation: The Seven Summits, directed by Tato Kotetishvili
David Vashadze, formerly Film Commissioner at the Georgian National Film Centre, was due to produce the project, which has now been postponed.
“They [the Georgian government] decided to punish Andro because he is one of the most popular and famous actors of his generation,” Vashadze commented. “They arrested him to make people afraid of going out and protesting.”
Chichinadze has been kept in prison since his arrest. His court case is expected to take several months.
Vashadze said that the theatre where the actor had been working went on strike in support of him.
There has been a bitter divide within the Georgian film community with many in the industry complaining about government harassment and intimidation.
Official state body The Georgian National Film Centre (GNFC) is regarded as being very closely aligned to the government. Rival organisation The Georgian Film Institute (GFI) was set up last year as an independent alternative to the GNFC.
The GNFC has been approached for comment.
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