21st THESSALONIKI DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL [1-10/3/2019]
Opening Ceremony
A different ceremony, inspired by the relationship between men and animals, opened the curtain on the 21th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival in a stacked Olympion theater. The tattoo artist - TV presenter George Mavridis and his little dog Molly, who put on a show playing cute and barking, were the hosts.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but this is probably the first time a man and a dog co-present an International Documentary Festival’s opening ceremony”, George Mavridis said. And added: “You wonder why? Because Molly and I are together for 12 years now. She is my roommate, my child, my friend. Anyone who has a dog will know what I mean. And also because this year’s tribute is called “Why Look at Animals?” We will watch more than 20 documentaries on man’s relationship with nature, the environment and animals. We will see, or rather live the world in a different way. We will remember who we are, what is our place on Earth”.
The TFF General Director Elise Jalladeau and its Artistic Director Orestis Andreadakis took Olympion stage immediately after and recited -Mrs Jalladeau in French and Mr Andreadakis in Greek, translated by Niki Papatheochari- the poem “Animal Laughing” (Animal Rit) by French novelist and poet Paul Eluard from the collection “Animals and their Men” (Les Animaux et Leurs Hommes).
People are laughing
People are happy, glad and cheerful
The mouth opens, opens wings and falls back.
Young people’s mouths are falling back
Old people’s mouths are falling back.
An animal is also laughing
Spreading joy with its contortions.
In all places on earth
The fur is moving, the wool is dancing
And birds are losing their feathers.
An animal is also laughing
Hoping and running away.
People are laughing
An animal is also laughing
An animal is fleeing.
“However, in this year’s edition there is more than films about animals. We have documentaries on love, music, cinema, human rights, politics”, George Mavridis added, inviting on stage the Governor of the Region of Central Macedonia Apostolos Tzitzikostas. The latter welcomed the audience in Thessaloniki and the TDF, which this year enters the third decade of its life, pointing out that it has managed to be recognized as one of the world’s leading global events, bringing to view novel trends, talented directors and exciting human stories. He also noted that since 2018 the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival is included, along with 28 leading festivals around the world, in the Documentary Feature Qualifying Festival List established by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “We are proud of TDF, and of its critical contribution to our country’s openness. We, as the authority of the Region of Central Macedonia, have supported and will continue to do so, both TIFF and TDF, making sure that financing will keep on coming from the European regional development funds”, Mr Tzitzikostas noted. He also mentioned the recent creation of a film office in the Region of Central Macedonia, something which -as he stressed- will enhance the potential for reception, support and materialization of audiovisual productions. He said he was confident that this year’s event will offer the audience unforgettable moments and emotions and encouraged the TDF visitors to also get acquainted with the city of Thessaloniki itself.
Subsequently, the Mayor of Thessaloniki Yiannis Boutaris took the stage to stress that the TDF has managed to become one of the leading festivals around the world, and praise the work of Mrs Jalladeau and Mr Andreadakis, without omitting Mr Michel Dimopoulos and Mr Dimitri Eipides, the persons in charge for a number of years in the past. “We also have to congratulate the audience of Thessaloniki, because I have been told that 3,000 tickets were sold today. I wish the TDF to keep up. We want more”, Mr Boutaris said.
Next, the Deputy Minister for Macedonia and Thrace Eleftheria Hatzigeorgiou officially opened the 21th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival saying: “In these ten days of artistic expression and creation, a special cultural event will once again leave a clear print on our city. An event which enriches Thessaloniki’s cultural identity and enhances its image to the world as a cultural crossroads, a place of cross-cultural exchange and of social osmosis”. Mrs Hatzigeorgiou talked about how both Festivals have managed to become an integral part of the city’s life. “Especially for the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, which this year is turning 21 years old, we can say it is an open window, a channel through which we can see and listen to images, faces and incidents around the world. Different directors from all over the world compose a panorama of artistic expression, which combines and encapsulates free expression, through different perspectives and approaches of daily life and history. There lies the magic of documentary: in capturing reality and contributing to the apprehension of truth in an ever-changing world”. Mrs Hatzigeorgiou gave emphasis to the fact that 81 out of the 178 feature and 49 short documentaries screening this year are Greek productions. She also focused on the cutting-edge issues this year’s documentaries deal with, such as human rights, history, political gamesmanship, environment, as well as the subject of memory, with stories from around the world. “May this and every year we can explore,via this event, new paths of free expression, creation, concern, inspiration and fruitful thinking”, she concluded.
At the end of the ceremony, after thanking the sponsors and supporters of the 21th TDF, the host George Mavridis said a few words about this year’s opening film: the documentary Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love by Nick Broomfield, which had its European premiere in the TDF and is about the legendary love between Leonard Cohen and his Norwegian muse, Marianne Ihlen. A love story that was born in Hydra, Greece, in the 1960s, made history, gave birth to songs and bound them together forever.
