Armenia has selected "Earthquake" to represent the country at the Academy Awards. Directed by Sarik Andreasyan, the film tells the story of the 1988 Earthquake that left the country devastated. The movie was made for $3 million and was produced by Moscow-based Mars Media. It is slated to open in Russia in December and has not had any major festival bow.

Armenia's history with the Academy is relatively short as it started submitting in 2001 but has only submitted five films. Among the most recognized include "Vodka Lemon," which premiered at the Venice Film Festival where it scored rave reviews. However, it failed to get nominated. The last time the country submitted a film was in 2012 with "If Only Everyone." That film generated little buzz and like the previous submissions, it did not get nominated.

Armenia will compete against a number of countries this year including Venezuela ("From Afar"), Bosnia and Herzegovina("Death in Sarajevo") Germany ("Toni Erdmann"), Romania ("Sieranevada") and Sweden ("A Man Called Ove.") Other countries that have submitted include Egypt ("Clash"), Georgia ("House of Others") and Belgium ("The Ardennes").

In recent years the foreign language category has been awarded to "Son of Saul," "Ida," "The Great Beauty," and "A Separation."

The deadline for the foreign language category is Oct. 3 with the Academy announcing a list of eligible films later that month. On Jan. 17 the Academy will announce the nine finalists from among the eligible films and on Jan. 24 nominations will be announced. The winner will be announced at the Oscar ceremony on Feb. 26, 2017.

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