15th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
Images of the 21st Century
March 15-24, 2013
OPENING CEREMONY
During the opening ceremony at the packed Olympion Theatre on Friday, March the 15th, the curtain rose on the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival - Images of the 21st Century, which celebrates its 15th anniversary. Bess Kargman’s award-winning documentary First Position, an upbeat, behind-the-scenes look at the glamorous, charming but also harsh world of the ballet, was screened after the ceremony.
The Thessaloniki jazz band He–Jazz Collective performed live, taking the audience on a music journey to the Balkans, and traditional Greek music. Festival Director Dimitri Eipides welcomed the audience and dignitaries, noting: “Here we are again, despite the hardships. We remain faithful to the goals we set 15 years ago. I never would have believed then what the Documentary Festival has accomplished”. Reminiscing on the Festival’s first edition in 1999, he added: “Audiences were skeptical then. The establishment of an internationally acclaimed institution celebrating the art of documentary was something unheard of in Greece. Short supply did not, however, mean there was no demand. The audience did want this alternative form of information, and we opened this window in 1999”.
A lot has happened since. “Audiences are no longer skeptical. They have been with us every step of the way. Some highlights of this 15-year journey are presented in our main retrospective ‘15 Years TDF: A Fascinating Journey’. The retrospective features 36 films that shaped the character and left their mark on the festival”, said Mr. Eipides, adding: “Our tribute is not about the Festival’s best editions or best moments. Our aim was rather to seek out and bring to mind some of the documentaries that were especially discussed and loved by audiences. After the completion of the Festival, the tribute will be hosted, from March 28 to April 7, by the Greek Film Archive in Athens”.
Mr. Eipides was visibly moved, as he explained the importance of this year’s anniversary. “It is truly hard to express in a few words what the Festival means to me. It is a commitment, a bond and a need. Each year, you have to start from square one. I value the films I select, and I honor those that do not make the cut. No decision is made lightly”. Mr. Eipides noted how the Festival had evolved. “We started out in 1999 with 68 films, and now there are more than 170 films from all over the world. The once skeptical audience is now packing the theaters”. Mr. Eipides also stressed the importance of the Agora/Doc Market section of the Festival, which includes more than 520 films in digital form, as well as more than 55 buyers and distributors from abroad. Mr. Eipides went on to stress that the films will be screened via live streaming in Greece and Cyprus. In the context of the Festival's Regional Events, they will also be screened at 40 Greek cities and 20 correctional facilities.
Mr. Eipides stressed the importance of the establishment of the Thessaloniki Cinematheque: “It will make an important contribution to the cinema culture of the city. The Cinematheque is already operating and I am happy to announce that it will soon host the largest cinema library in Greece, featuring 8,000 book and magazine tittles. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation provided financial support to the project, and the opening ceremony will take place on March 23.”
In his closing remarks, Mr. Eipides expressed his thanks to the Greek Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, Culture and Sports, the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT), the European Union’s Regional Development Fund for Central Macedonia, the sponsors and all festival supporters. “Each time we accomplish a goal, we set the bar higher. I am looking forward to the new challenges awaiting us, and I hope you share my eagerness”.
Zoe Kazazaki, General Director of Modern Culture, addressed the audience on behalf of alternate minister of Culture Kostas Tzavaras. “The Thessaloniki Documentary Festival celebrates its 15th anniversary. It is dedicated to an art that awakens, informs and transmits human experiences through the lens. In these difficult times, the role of the documentary is especially important, offering alternative information and shedding light on important sociocultural phenomena. The Documentary Festival has evolved and forged connections with audiences and filmmakers, who found in the festival an ideal launching pad for their career. Watching a documentary transforms the distant ‘other’ into one’s self; the viewer becomes a more aware and active citizen. I hope that the 15-year anniversary marks the beginning of a new journey”.
Ms. Kazazaki praised festival founder Mr. Eipides. “We have had a fascinating journey these 15 years, which allowed professionals from around the world to engage in an intercultural dialogue among themselves and with the audience and institutions of the city of Thessaloniki. The Festival succeeded in evolving and improving, without losing its dynamism. The Festival cultivated the love and appreciation of audiences for documentaries and launched many artists into international success.”
Ms. Kazazaki also stressed the potential of the EU’s new support programme Creative Europe (2014 – 2020). “At the Doc Market section and the roundtable discussions, the prospect of collaborations that could receive funding from this programme should be investigated”, she said, adding that the documentary is a demanding form of art that deserves to be supported by any and all means possible.
In his speech, Thessaloniki mayor and chairman of the board of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival Yannis Boutaris said: “This anniversary edition of a Festival embraced by the city audience and the international documentary scene, marks the steady progress and evolution of the Festival in these 15 years. Today, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival is one of the most important globally.” Mr. Boutaris called Mr. Eipides “the living history of the Festival, as he was the one who founded, nurtured and organized it”. Mr. Boutaris also stressed that the frugality and modesty necessitated by the financial crisis did not have an effect on artistic quality. “The programme is diverse, showcasing documentaries from around the world, full of open discussions, parallel events, and the photo exhibition ‘Thessaloniki 101’, which aspires to reveal, document and capture the truth of a world that is as complex as it is controversial - the world we are living in”. He also noted that the images are a meeting point of the macro- and micro- manifestations of history, “of the lives of everyday people and the great problems and challenges of our time”. Mr Boutaris concluded by saying that the City of Thessaloniki supports the Documentary Festival, and considers it “one of the most vibrant and dynamic cells of the city.”
The “15 Years TDF: A Fascinating Journey,” tribute, the tribute to Patricio Guzman, the Festival’s sections “Human Rights”, “Society and Environment”, “Views of the World”, “Stories to Tell”, “Portraits: Human Journeys”, “Greek Panorama”, as well as the Greek film lineup of the 15th TDF, the photo exhibition “Thessaloniki 101” and the events at the Thessaloniki Cinematheque are financed by the European Union’s Regional Development Fund for Central Macedonia, 2007-2013.
