Sports
Anna Maxim Discusses Career and Weightlifting Film 'The Reverse Side of the Medal'
The process of writing the script for “The Reverse Side of the Medal” and then filming and editing it took two years, which Maxim said was a very short time considering all that was involved, including covering four seasons, getting the right results from the actors, and filming on a level appropriate for Europe and the rest of the world.
At the February screenings of “The Reverse Side of the Medal” in Arlington, HCA leaders Naira Balagyozian and Raya Gevorgyan welcomed guests and moderated questions to the director from the audience after the presentation.
In the interview, she observed that so far the film has not yet been shown at big European or American film festivals. It is represented by her production company, called Maxim Production, but she said she wished to focus her energy on creating her next film, so she hoped that someone will be found who can be flexible in dealing with this matter. Maxim said that she came to the United States in part to prepare for this new film but is not yet ready to speak about it. After her US trip, she was going to Europe to participate in more screenings of “The Reverse Side of the Medal.”
Nevertheless, she said, “No matter how much you learn, no matter how impressed and inspired you may be, what is most important is that you realize what is in your heart — not try to copy someone else but be able to recognize and learn and then create something that is your own.”
Her first film was called “Taraskhalnerov Karot” [Longing with Misspellings]. It was about a village teacher whose son was in the army. This teacher was so committed to the preservation of the Armenian language that whomever he encountered he would teach Armenian, just like his students, said Maxim. Even when his son wrote letters from the army, he corrected them with red ink and sent them back, not allowing the mother to read them. On the one hand his longing was suffocating. On the other hand, Maxim explained, when a man has principles, he must never betray them.
Hay Cultural Alliance host Naira Balagyozian (photo Aram Arkun)She said in response to an audience question that “The Reverse Side of the Medal” was in Armenia’s 2024 Oscars competition but the 46 members of the Armenian Film Academy chose a different film, which was 70 percent Russian and had little chance to win anything under international conditions then.
The main events of the film are factual, Maxim said, though the order of some were changed. The marriage scene, in which the weight was placed on the barbell just like a ring on the finger of the spouse did not take place in reality, she said, but was a directorial addition to strengthen the meaning of the film.
Maxim said that though there are some extra demands when the director is acting in a scene, it does have the advantage of concrete knowledge of what the director and script demand of you as an actor and may also save time during studio editing. Moreover, she stated: “When I had to undertake this film, I recalled Orson Well’s “The Citizen,” which for me is one of the best international films, where he served as chief actor, director, producer and screen writer. I thought that if it succeeded with him, it could succeed with me too and it seems that it did.”
She had to apply to the National Film Fund of Armenia to obtain financing and found out on January 28 that the application deadline was February 28. She said that she had only done interviews of Avdalyan and others involved in her life so far. She realized she said that in one month she would have to write the script. After listening to 72 hours of interviews, she told herself that she could not leave her room until she wrote it.
As a child, she enjoyed assembling everyone to portray circus acts and receive prizes. She made her own prizes out of whatever toys or statues there were in the house and instructed everyone to give her one. Her sister advised her to apply to the Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinematography and, Maxim said, she was only accepted with great difficulty, being practically the last one on the list.
Making ‘The Reverse Side of the Medal’
“Generally, when professionalism comes, the creator becomes less honest,” Maxim said. “As a result of professionalism, he may be able to create good films but that cannot be long lasting if there is not truly that sincerity. For that reason, if you have noticed, the latest films of successful directors are generally very weak because they are more about professionalism. I hope that my love may help me not to lose that.”
Before making “The Reverse Side of the Medal,” Maxim served as co-director of the film “The Armenian” [Hay haye] (2021) with Mikayel (“Michael”) Poghosyan, who also wrote the script and acted in that film.
She said that Armen Mazmanyan, her teacher at the Institute, forbade students to appear in television soap opera serials through the third year of the program, but afterwards she began to work in this arena. She worked ten years as an actress, appearing in a number of serials such as “Generali aghjiku” [The General’s Daughter] (2012-2013) and “Urishi Hogin” [Stranger’s Soul] (162 episodes, 2015-16) as well as in supporting roles in comedy films such as “Chikago Tsaghkdzor Tranzit” (2012) and “Siro gortsakits” (2015) and action films like “Chghjikner: Chezok goti” [Bats: Neutral Zone] (2012) before she stopped and instead went to Moscow in 2017 to learn directing at the S. A. Gerasimov All-Russian State University of Cinematography (VGIK). She felt the institute in Russia was the most serious one in the region, she said, and she had no problem studying in Russian. Maxim noted that she has always loved Russian literature, and never mixes Russian politics with art.
The budget for the filming was not very large, so that Maxim said that a lot of equipment was lacking. She had to film the incident of an automobile accident in Moscow without having basic equipment as a result.
In the after-screening discussion with the audience, Maxim confessed that it was very hard for her as an actress to learn the dialect of Gyumri (Leninakan), as she was always inclined to speak in the Tavush dialect, but in the end she said the people from Leninakan were satisfied.
“‘Aniko,’” said Maxim, “is the story of my childhood, of how I liked literature. Generally, directors wait until the end of their lives to film about their childhood, but I decided to do the opposite.” The main topic of the film is Aniko’s summer vacation in Tavush, in the northeast of Armenia. Maxim’s grandparents grew up in Tavush and though she and her parents were born in Yerevan, and her mother’s side is from Goris in Syunik, Maxim said she considers herself a “Tavushtsi.”
She filmed several short films in this period. The first two were short films, while the third, “Aniko,” was some 50 minutes long and served as her diploma work in Moscow. Maxim said, “In general, if you look at the journey the artist has travelled, short or long, you understand that the person usually speaks about the same thing/topic in different stories.”
She did not act in her first three films. “I had even become cold concerning my specialty, but through this role [of Avdalyan], which returned life to me in the acting world,” she said with a laugh, “I understood that I had learned directing in order to film good films for me in which I can act.”
The second film was about a family whose child had died due to burns experienced during the Trndez festival. That couple could not return to their everyday lives until, as the result of defending the child of a neighbor, they decided to have a child again. That film, Maxim said, was about not losing hope for the continuation of life.
While in Armenian many protest that there is not enough money for making films, Maxim said that an even more important problem is a lack of specialists and experience, so that collaboration and exchange of experience with European or American companies and experts, including those Armenians living abroad, would be very helpful. That is something she would like to do on her next film, she said.
She also read an American book, How to Write a Movie in 21 Days, which evidently helped her succeed in meeting the deadline. Thinking about the stress, she said, “Now, when you remind me, I am just saying the words, but when I remember it, I just want to cry.”
She said she had to film “Aniko” with practically no budget and the assistance of friends, yet it won international prizes, beating out a number of large budget films. And she thinks she knows why: because it was a very honest film.
The DI women’s volleyball championship is here. The tournament continues Friday, Dec. 5 with both first and second round matches and lasts until the national championship on Sunday, Dec. 21 at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
The full 64-team bracket was announced on Sunday, Nov. 30. Thirty-one conference champions earned automatic bids to the tournament, with the NCAA DI women’s volleyball committee selecting 33 other teams as at-large picks.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2025 women’s volleyball championship.
2025 DI women’s volleyball championship bracket
👉 Click or tap to see the interactive bracket
2025 DI women’s volleyball championship schedule
All times listed in ET
- First round: Dec. 4-5
- Second round: Dec. 5-6
- Regionals: Dec. 11 and 13 or Dec. 12 and 14
- Semifinals: Thursday, Dec. 18
- National championship: 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 21 | ABC
- Selection show: 6 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 30
- First round:
- Thursday, Dec. 4
- No. 5 Colorado 3, American 0
- No. 6 Baylor 3, Arkansas State 2
- No. 8 UCLA 3, Georgia Tech 2
- No. 5 Miami (Fla.) 3, Tulsa 1
- No. 4 Indiana 3, Toledo 0
- No. 6 UNI 3, Utah 2
- North Carolina 3, No. 6 UTEP 1
- Utah State 3, No. 7 Tennessee 2
- No. 1 Kentucky 3, Wofford 0
- No. 3 Purdue 3, Wright State 0
- No. 4 Kansas 3, High Point 0
- Cal Poly 3, No. 5 BYU 2
- No. 3 Creighton 3, Northern Colorado 2
- No. 3 Wisconsin 3, Eastern Illinois 0
- No. 2 Arizona State 3, Coppin State 0
- No. 4 USC 3, Princeton 0
- Thursday, Dec. 4
DI women’s volleyball championship history
Here is the complete history of DI women’s volleyball champions:
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State track & field is set to begin its indoor slate with a three-meet split-squad weekend. The Nittany Lions will start their week in Philadelphia on Friday, Dec. 5 at the Penn Opener, also competing on Saturday, Dec. 6. On Saturday, there will also be Nittany Lions competing at the Bucknell Opener in Lewisburg, and the Sharon-Colyear Danville Season Opener in Boston on Saturday. Dec. 6.
Penn State is set to begin the 2025-26 indoor season while continuing to build off its success from a season ago. The men’s squad finished 12th in the Big Ten last indoor season while the women finished seventh. The squad returns six All-Americans from last year’s indoor team including 2024 First Team All-Americans Handal Roban and Hayley Kitching.
Head Coach John Gondak enters his 12th season leading the Nittany Lion track & field program. His coaching resume includes 62 First Team All-Americans and 11 Big Ten team titles.
PENN OPENER – Friday-Saturday, December 5-6
Live Results | Watch on Saturday (ESPN+)
Penn State will send seven athletes to compete at the Penn Opener. Maddie Pitts will be the lone competitor on Friday in the pentathlon.
BUCKNELL OPENER – Saturday, December 6
Live Results
The largest group of Nittany Lions will be headed to Lewisburg to compete in the Bucknell Opener. 36 athletes in field events and sprints will be the main competition group for PSU this weekend at Bucknell.
SHARON COLYEAR-DANVILLE SEASON OPENER – Saturday, December 6
Live Results | Watch (FloTrack)
Penn State will be sending 10 athletes to Boston for season opening action. The middle distance/distance group will make up the group competing against some of the top talent in the nation.
FULL 2025-26 INDOOR TRACK & FIELD SCHEDULE
Dec. 5-6 – Penn Opener | Philadelphia, Pa.
Dec. 6 – Bucknell Opener | Lewisburg, Pa.
Dec. 6 – Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener | Boston, Mass.
Jan. 17 – Nittany Lion Challenge | University Park, Pa.
Jan. 24 – Penn 10 Team Elite | Philadelphia, Pa.
Jan. 30-31 – Penn State National Open | University Park, Pa.
Feb. 7 – Sykes & Sabock Challenge | University Park, Pa.
Feb. 13-14 – Tyson Invitational | Fayetteville, Ark.
Feb. 13-14 – David Hemery Valentine Invitational | Boston, Mass.
Feb. 20 – Penn State Tune-Up | University Park, Pa.
Feb. 27-28 – Big Ten Indoor Championships | Indianapolis, Ind.
Mar. 13-14 – NCAA Indoor Championships | Fayetteville, Ark.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Follow along with the team on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateTFXC) and X/Instagram (@pennstatetfxc). Live updates on race day regarding start times and other important notes will be posted on X.
Sports
#11 Creighton Volleyball Outlasts Northern Colorado to Advance to Second Round of NCAA Tournament
Courtesy of Rob Anderson, Creighton Athletics
OMAHA, Neb. — No. 11 Creighton Volleyball was pushed to the brink but survived to win its 21st straight match on Thursday evening, opening up NCAA Tournament play with a 3-2 victory over Northern Colorado. Scores of the Bluejay triumph were 25-12, 23-25, 23-25, 25-17, 15-8.
Creighton earns itself a Second Round match-up against Northern Iowa (26-5) after the sixth-seeded Panthers finished off their first reverse sweep in the NCAA Tournament since 2022 with a 15-25, 21-25, 26-24, 25-20, 15-10 win over Utah. Creighton defeated the Panthers at D.J. Sokol Arena on Sept. 14 to close out play at the Bluejay Invitational.
Five women had multiple kills in the first set as Creighton powered past Northern Colorado, led by six kills from Ava Martin. Martin also had a pair of aces late in the set to solidify CU’s 25-12 victory. The Jays hit .438 and had 17 kills to UNC’s six kills on .000 hitting and never trailed in the frame.
UNC snapped Creighton’s 17-set win streak with a 25-23 victory in the second set, which featured nine ties and five lead changes. Isabel Bennett had go-ahead kills to make it 23-22 and 24-23 and Alayna Tessena put down the winner on set point. Northern Colorado had 15 kills and 18 digs in the second set and held the Bluejays to 11 kills and .200 hitting. Martin had seven kills for CU in the second set, while Sydney Breissinger added six digs.
The Bears won the first three points of the third set and moved in front 8-4 to force an early timeout from CU head coach Brian Rosen. The stoppage did little to improve the fortunes for the hosts, who called another timeout six points later after falling behind 12-6 to the Big Sky Tournament champions. The second timeout did the trick, as the Bluejays countered with an 8-2 burst to even the score at 14-all. Northern Colorado settled down, never surrendering the lead, and led 23-20 before one last push from the hosts. Martin pounded her 18th kill of the night, and Nora Wurtz followed with her 56th ace of the fall to cut CU’s deficit to 23-22 and lead UNC coach Lydnsey Oates to call timeout. Martin slammed a cross-court kill to tie the score at 23-all, but UNC answered with a Zoe Gibbs kill for a set point opportunity. The Bears won the set on a Bluejay attack error, 25-23.
The Bluejays got off to a 6-2 lead in the fourth set thanks in part to three early UNC hitting errors, then extended the advantage to 14-6. The Jays won the set 25-17, with freshman Abbey Hayes stepping up with a team-best four kills. CU had 4.5 blocks in the set, including one of set point from Reinhardt and Martin.
Creighton got off to a quick start in the fifth frame, scoring the first three points on two Martin kills and a UNC attack error. CU led 8-3 at the changeover
Martin was dominant with 30 kills on 65 swings, while Jaya Johnson finished with 12 kills. Reinhardt rounded out the Bluejays in double figure kills with 10. Annalea Maeder closed the match with a double-double, delivering 53 assists and 20 digs.
Tessena led Northern Colorado with 14 kills, while Brynn Reines finished with 11 kills
First serve of tomorrow’s Second Round match is at 6:30 p.m.
NOTES: Creighton improved to 18-14 all-time in 15 NCAA Tournament appearances, including a 12-3 mark in the First Round … Creighton has won 21 straight matches, its third-longest streak in program history … Creighton is now 8-4 in home matches in the NCAA Tournament, including five straight victories … Creighton has won its last 11 home matches this fall … Creighton is now 4-1 all-time against Northern Colorado … Creighton has won 68 straight matches over unranked foes and 56 non-televised matches in a row … Ava Martinmoved into third place in CU history in career service aces with 126 … Ava Martinhad her 25th straight match with 10 or more kills and 108th in a row with five or more kills … Ava Martin had her 13th career match with 20+ kills, and seventh this season.
LYNCHBURG – Propelled by a pair of personal-best performances in the weight throw, the Elon University women’s track and field team opened its indoor season Thursday at the Liberty Kickoff inside the Liberty Indoor Complex.
In the women’s weight throw, the Phoenix placed two athletes inside the top four. Adriana Clarke claimed runner-up honors with a personal-best toss of 18.14m, moving into third on Elon’s all-time performance list. Isabella Johnson finished third overall at 17.33m, also marking a new PR for the sophomore.
Elon also featured three competitors in the pentathlon. Senior Lizzie Lopez was the top Phoenix finisher, placing seventh with 3,510 points. She highlighted the event by tying for first in the high jump with a clearance of 1.65m. Freshman Greta Urbonaviciute debuted with a tenth-place finish and 3,309 points, landing inside the program’s top-10 performance list. Classmate Carolina Frada scored 2,832 points to place 11th in her first collegiate pentathlon.
ON DECK
Elon continues action at the Liberty Kickoff on Friday, beginning with the women’s 5,000-meter run at 10 a.m.
— ELON —
SAN BRUNO, Calif. – The West Coast Conference officially announced its Volleyball All-Academic team for the 2025 season on Thursday afternoon.
For San Francisco, Crystal Galaviz, Jamie Low, Shannon Knight, Astrid Puig, and Abby Wadas earned WCC All-Academic Honorable Mention honors.
At the conclusion of each athletic season, the West Coast Conference selects an all-academic squad for each conference-sponsored sport. To be considered, a student-athlete must maintain at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average, while also being a significant contributor to her team and in at least their second year at their school.
The full 2025 West Coast Conference Volleyball All-Academic Team can be viewed below:
2025 WEST COAST CONFERENCE VOLLEYBALL ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
| Name | School | Class | GPA | Major |
| Genevieve Bane | Saint Mary’s | Gr. | 3.70 | Busiiness Administration |
| Olivia Bennett | San Diego | Sr. | 3.54 | Behavioral Neuroscience |
| Lucie Blazkova | Washington State | So. | 3.92 | Psychology |
| Maddie Boerstra | LMU | Gr. | 3.82 | Sociology |
| Nevaeh Bray | Portland | Gr. | 4.00 | Sports Business |
| Lucia Busso | Portland | Sr. | 4.00 | Marketing |
| Alyson Cox | Pacific | So. | 4.00 | Computer Science |
| Alyssa Eimer | Santa Clara | Sr. | 3.94 | Marketing |
| Grace Flanagan | Santa Clara | Jr. | 4.00 | Studio Art |
| Kate Herrick | Gonzaga | So. | 3.91 | Biology |
| Emma McMahon | Pepperdine | Sr. | 3.83 | Psychology |
| Chloe Pravednikov | Pepperdine | So. | 3.63 | Pre-Business Administration |
| Maui Robins | Portland | Sr. | 4.00 | Marketing |
| Lauren Rumel | Oregon State | Sr. | 3.91 | Speech Communication |
| Cate Shanahan | Santa Clara | Jr. | 3.83 | English |
| Lexi Trapani | Santa Clara | Jr. | 3.88 | Business |
For more information and updates on the University of San Francisco volleyball program, follow the Dons on Twitter @USFDonsVB, @USFDonsVB on Instagram, and @USFDonsVball on Facebook.
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