The presentation of the projects participating in this year's Thessaloniki Pitching Forum, the co-production and co-financing platform of the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, took place on Monday, March 10th, at John Cassavetes theater, as part of the Agora of the 27th Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival. The participants had the opportunity to present their projects to an international panel of experts.
The event was prefaced by Angeliki Vergou, Head of the Agora: "Good morning, we are very happy to have you here with us, so many familiar faces but also some new ones, for the actions of the Agora of the 27th Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, and more specifically for the presentation of the Thessaloniki Pitching Forum. We have 14 exciting projects to present to you today and we are thrilled", Angeliki Vergou said before giving the floor to the General Director of the Festival, Elise Jalladeau.
"Dear friends and partners, at our Festival we believe that in these times of exclusion and separation, we should value unity and companionship more than ever. That's why we're so happy to welcome you to Thessaloniki: with 14 exciting projects at the Thessaloniki Pitching Forum, 10 great documentaries nearing completion at the Docs in Progress presentation and 448 professionals guests, the chances of cooperating and collaborating are truly plentiful. The most important thing, of course, is not the number of these meetings, but their quality. Therefore, I hope that you spend your time in Thessaloniki in useful meetings that will be beneficial both for you and for the art of documentary", Elise Jalladeau stated.
At this point, Angeliki Vergou thanked Agora, the production team and the entire team of the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. She also warmly thanked the tutors of the Thessaloniki Pitching Forum workshop, as well as the sponsors and supporters of the Agora, who give life to its actions in each event. She then gave the floor to Errika Zacharopoulou, member of the Agora team and in charge of the Thessaloniki Pitching Forum section, who presented the Jury of this year's Thessaloniki Pitching Forum as well as the awards. Later on, the moderators of the presentation, Bronte Stahl, producer from Here and Elsewhere films, and Brigid O'Shea, director and international consultant, DAE - Germany, kicked off the presentation of the projects.
The 2025 Thessaloniki Pitching Forum Jury consists of:
Leonidas Konstantarakos | Producer, Alaska Films - Greece
Marianne Ostrat | Producer & Founder, Alexandra Film - Estonia
Nora Philippe | Head of Program, EURODOC - France
The tutors of the workshop are: Ove Jensen, producer and documentary expert, Paradiddle Pictures - Denmark, Brigid O'Shea, director and International Consultant, DAE - Germany, Peter Jaeger, Consultant, Jaeger Creative - Austria, Mila Turajlić, Director - Producer, Poppy Pictures - Serbia.
The Thessaloniki Pitching Forum projects are eligible for the following awards: IEFTA Award for Best Documentary in Development 10,000 EUR cash-prize. The Onassis Foundation gives to the Greek filmmakers with a project to either Thessaloniki Pitching Forum or the AGORA Docs in Progress the Onassis Film Award of 5,000 EUR. Its goal is to showcase up-and-coming creators. The Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT) which presents the ERT Award of 2,000 EUR for a Greek project, the Mediterranean Film Institute Script2Film granting the MFI Scholarship for the Doc Lab participation (|June-December 2024), the EURODOC Award of 1,000 EUR along with a VIP membership, the DAE Consultancy Award with a bespoke consultation on a project with an industry expert, Aylon Productions Digital Services Award who offer a Digital transfer of archival material, and the International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film offering the DOK Leipzig Award which includes two free accreditations and accommodation, October 2025.
The 2025 projects of Thessaloniki Pitching Forum:
ABOUT HORSES, WIVES AND WEAPONS
Director: Volkan Üce, Production: Emmy Oost - Cassette for timescapes, Co-production: Samuel Feller - Magellan Films, Belgium
BORN GREEK - MADE AMERICAN
Director: Lefteris Charitos, Production: Stelios Cotionis - Foss Productions, Writer: Katerina Bakogianni, Co-production: Alexis Varouxakis - Adrenaline Entertainment, Creative Producer & Content Development: Anna Nomikou, Associate Producer: Graziella Kanellou, Greece, USA
BUGBOY
Director: Lucas Paleocrassas, Production: Rea Apostolides - Anemon, Executive Production: Madeleine Avramoussis, Co-production: Maria Stevnback Westergren - Toolbox, Adam Leibovitz - Flach Film Productions, Greece, Denmark, France
CLOSURE
Director: Michał Marczak, Production: Monika Braid - Braidmade Films, Co-production: Gregor Streiber - inselfilm produktion, Executive producer: Karolina Marczak, Poland, Germany
HIGHWAYS OF HOPE
Director: Alexa Bakony, Production: Gábor Osváth, Veronika Gál - Filmfabriq Ltd., Hungary
THE LAST SUMMER
Director: Jan Jurczak & Eleanora Iadkouskaya, Production: Frieder Schlaich - Filmgalerie 451, Germany
LIFE ON PAUSE
Director: Anthoniy Hristov, Production: Svetla Turnin - Documentary Media Foundation, Bulgaria
MAMA KLORIN
Director: Doreida Xhogu, Production: Mina Dreki - MARNI FILMS, Greece
MEMOIRS OF JERUSALEM
Director: Kinda Kurdi, Production: Kinda Kurdi - K² Visual Media, Co-production: Brian Hill - Century Films Ltd, Jordan, United Kingdom
MISSING IN ACTION
Director: Kateryna Holovko, Marharyta Melnychuk, Production: Aliona Kachkan - TABOR LTD, Ukraine
MY AUNTIES
Director: Hazal Hanquet, Production: Aslihan Altuğ, Anna Maria Aslanoğlu - Istos Film, Türkiye
OH, HEART DON'T BE AFRAID
Director: Ana Kvichidze, Production: Avtandil Khorava - Moonbow Production, Co-production: - Natalia Imaz - Parabellum films, Mariam Bitsadze - 17/07 Productions, Niko Mikadze - Murman Original Pictures, Georgia, Germany
RESISTING RESIDENTS
Director: Nikos Pilos, Production: Dafni Kalafati - Filmiki Productions, Greece
TAKEN BY THE WHITE MAN
Director: Ana Sofia Fonseca, Production: Daniella Rice, Ana Sofia Fonseca - Carrossel Produções, Portugal
