Control of Armenia’s HayFilm (ArmenFilm) studio company has been transferred to the country’s Ministry of Culture in a move designed to relaunch Armenia's stagnant cinema industry.

The studio company, founded in 1923 as a production unit of the Soviet State Cinema Organization, is named in honor of  film director, actor, and screenwriter Hamo Beknazarian.

The studio was sold to Armenia Studios (part of the holding CS MEDIA CITY) in 2005, which in turn was owned by members of the Armenian diaspora in the United States – the Cafesjian and Sarkisian families. The new owner committed to invest $66 million in the studio over ten years.

It was renamed CS Film Studios but failed to produce the required new feature films. In 2015, the Armenian government decided that the new management had failed to satisfy the conditions of the sale and moved to reclaim the studio's assets.

Since 2015, the studio remained under the jurisdiction of the country’s State Property Management committee and did hasn't operated.

The government states the plan calls for the development of a "Hayfilm Film Production City" complex that will include film production, post-production, professional education and film heritage preservation services, and expanded opportunities for the development of the film industry and international cooperation, ensuring competitive film production and cultural management.

Photo: Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Zhanna Andreasyan