56th THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
November 6-15, 2015
GREEK FILMS
November 6-15, 2015
GREEK FILMS
Greek cinema is the protagonist of the 56th Thessaloniki International Film Festival. 14 films produced in Greece and in co-production with other countries will have their Greek premiere in Thessaloniki. 6 films which have already had their Greek premiere will also be screened in this year’s edition, as well as 16 award-winning Greek films of the 2015 Short Film Festival in Drama. Moreover, the 56th TIFF will present 40 short animation films which comprise a special tribute titled 70 Years of Greek Animation. In addition, the Festival celebrates the work of the acclaimed Greek cinematographer Nikos Kavoukidis, whose career in the Greek cinema, television and theater spans six decades. His artistic achievements unfold in the film A Life Journey of 60 Years: Nikos Kavoukidis 1955-2015, which will have its premiere at the Festival, in his presence.
GREEK FILMS
Fourteen Greek films will have their Greek premiere in Thessaloniki, two of which will be participating in the 56th TIFF’s International Competition section (to be announced on a later date). Chevalier by Athina Rachel Tsangari (Special Screening) introduces a challenging, competitive power game played by a group of six men stranded on a yacht in the Aegean Sea. Set in contemporary Athens, Constantine Giannaris’ latest work Spring Awakening focuses boldly on a gang of teenage thieves and their rebellious tragic outbreak against law and society. In his debut feature film Interruption, Yorgos Zois centres on an interactive theatrical adaptation of a classic Greek tragedy, in which life meets art in the most unpredictable ways. A deep personal crisis is depicted in Yorgos Gkikapeppas’ Silent, whose main character, a young promising soprano, mysteriously loses her voice and confronts the people she loves. Smac by Elias Demetriou unfolds the profoundly human story of a woman with cancer and a homeless man, whose accidental encounter changes their life perspectives. A lonely divorced factory worker unjustly loses his job and plans his revenge in Dimitris Athanitis’ Invisible, while the existential odyssey of a wandering man is highlighted in the enigmatic film Impressions of a Drowned Man by Kyros Papavassiliou, inspired by the work of Greek poet Kostas Karyotakis. Family Member by Marinos Kartikkis focuses on the contemporary crisis through the story of a family who tries to cope with their financial problems. Zenaida by Alexis Tsafas and Yannis Fotou uncovers the life of the titular Africa-born heroine, a victim of women's trafficking, who struggles to survive in hostile Athens. Heavy heat wave and water shortage cause turmoil for the people of a Greek seaside resort in Joyce Nashawati’s Blind Sun, while Andreas Marianos’ Fate observes the strange traditions of a small Greek island and a mysterious death that occurs there. Tabula Rasa by Iro Donta and Natalia Stratou is the coming-of-age drama of a young boy who embarks on a dangerous journey in search of his identity. Love takes center-stage in Spyros Amiropoulos’ In the Kitchen, a film that tackles the stories of six couples in different stages of their relationships, while Nikos Kornilios’ The Cypress Deep Down provides an experimental, in-depth look at love and emotions.
Six films which have already had their Greek premiere will be screened during this year’s edition. Wednesday 04:45 by Alexis Alexiou, a film noir set in Athens, records the relentless struggle of a desperate man to save everything he cherishes for. A weird creature upsets the inhabitants of an isolated island and the battle between good and evil begins in Angelos Frantzis’ atmospheric film Symptom. A strange love story about two people who find it hard to connect takes place in Ursa Minor by Elissavet Chronopoulou, while in Panos Karkanevatos’ Riverbanks love blossoms somewhere between life and death, in a minefield at Greece's northern border. Two women coexist in the most peculiar way in a man’s “double” life in the sensitive film Lovestruck by Thodoris Atheridis, while the protagonist in Savvas Karidas’ Illusion becomes enchanted by a femme fatale and immerses in a dangerous world of deceit and lies.
70 YEARS OF GREEK ANIMATION TRIBUTE
The 56th TIFF celebrates 70 years of Greek animation films in cooperation with ASIFA HELLAS (International Animated Film Association of Greece). The tribute 70 Years of Greek Animation presents an illustrative anthology of 40 short animation films dated from the early 40s to the present day, showcasing thus the evolution and diversity of Greek animation films. In addition, on Saturday, November 7 (12.30, Warehouse C) a round table discussion titled “Organized Animation Production - A Strategy for the Achievement of a Difficult Goal” will take place with the participation of representatives of ASIFA HELLAS and the Festival’s audience.
