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“My films carry a very intense personal hue, they crystallize my own idea about modern times and past accomplishments. I try to depict experiences and thoughts that escape preset boundaries and plunge the viewer into a state which allows them to unfold their imagination and create lasting thoughts that will not be ephemeral”
“I make films to discover myself. I don’t consider myself such a good director. I look like Sisyphus. I’m trying to reach the top and then start all over again. Yet, each film is an opportunity for me to explore the film language".
59th THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL [1-11/11/2018] || 1-11/11/2018
Exhibition opening: “#CedefopPhotoAward: Youth education and training”
As part of the 59th Thessaloniki International Film Festival, on Friday, November 2, 2018, the opening of the photo exhibition “#CedefopPhotoAward: Youth in education and training” took place at the Cinema Museum of Thessaloniki (Warehouse A’, Harbor), in the presence of the TIFF General Director, Elise Jalladeau.
The exhibition is organized by Cedefop, the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (www.cedefop.europa.eu), located in Thessaloniki, and is curated by Cedefop and TIFF. The exhibition showcases the first, second and third prize winning stories, along with the runners-up in the competition “#CedefopPhotoAward 2018: Youth education and training” organized by Cedefop. As part of the competition, groups of European vocational school students were invited to illustrate their experiences in the form of photo stories.
The first to speak was the deputy chairman of Cedefop board Mara Brugia, who warmly thanked TIFF’s General Director and Anna Milossi, Head of Public Relations. Mrs Brugia noted that Cedefop is awarding these prizes for the third consecutive year and added: “One of the winning groups, the one from Lithuania, also attended the opening ceremony of the 59th TIFF and will spend their weekend watching films”. After thanking the Cinema Museum of Thessaloniki for hosting the exhibition, she noted that this award ceremony “is another way for us to appreciate the usefulness of our work in action” since the event gives Cedefop members the opportunity to make contact with the young people they work with.
Mrs Brugia said that education and training are very high on the European agenda. According to a research organized by Cedefop, not only the institutions, but an overwhelming 90% of European citizens consider education and training to be of high value. “Studies in the field of education and training are highly appreciated by employers”, she added, noting how important education and training are for society itself. “In Cedefop we are trying to change the belief that vocational training has to be of minor importance compared to other options”, she concluded.
No less than 100 groups with more than 300 members and about 80 schools from 18 EU member states took part in the competition #CedefopPhotoAward 2018. The photo stories illustrating the experiences of these groups in education and training can be considered an excellent example of innovation, communication and group work. The three winning groups are from Italy, Hungary and Lithuania; the first two were invited to attend the Vocational Skills Week that will take place next week in Vienna.
Consequently, TIFF’s General Director Elise Jalladeau took the floor. After welcoming the Cedefop team and the competition winners, Mrs Jaladdeau pointed out that the photos were a collective project by young people from all over Europe, that “gives all of us the opportunity to admire their work in Thessaloniki and the Festival, and helps them benefit from their presence in the event”. As she noted, “The Festival appreciates and promotes education; we offer film education programs for young children, in an effort to instruct the new generation of cinephiles, and not just them. We also offer training to film professionals, such as the distributors”. Concluding, Mrs Jaladdeau talked about the theme idea of the exhibition, “Tell us your story”, pointing out that this is what cinema does: it tells stories, thus unifying photography with motion picture.
After the award ceremony, it was the winners’ turn to speak. They thanked the committee and the Festival for the invitation, making special mention to the team spirit that marked their work, the self-confidence they acquired via the competition, and the strong friendships they developed both between them and with their teachers. One of them described Greece as one of the most beautiful countries he has visited and thanked the Festival for giving him the opportunity to be here and take interesting photos.
At the end of the event, Cedefop head of communication Gerd Oskar Bausewein gave gifts and brochures to the winners and the audience.
59th THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL [1-11/11/2018] || 1-11/11/2018
Screening: Genesis by Philippe Lesage
The Canadian director Philippe Lesage’s film Genesis premiered on Friday 2 November in “Stavros Tornes” theatre, as part of the 59th Thessaloniki International Film Festival. The film makes part of “Life Lessons” admission-free tribute, consisting of five films that have their Greek premiere in Thessaloniki and, with education as their common denominator, teach valuable and universal lessons in a non-didactic, yet perfectly meaningful way.
Before the screening, the film director expressed his delight for visiting Greece and the Festival for the first time. He also thanked the audience for being there, and the Festival for having selected his film for screening. As he said, the fact that the film’s participation in “Life Lessons” tribute aroused in him a sense of oxymoron, since he hopes that his works will not be perceived as actual life lessons or behavioral guidelines by the audience. “In my films, I systematically refrain from judging the characters; all I want is to show my own view of reality, through my experiences and connection with other people”, he noted.
A Q&A session followed the screening. Philippe Lesage spoke about the third act, which totally diverges from the first two as to the plot. He explained that he considers this final act as the film’s strongest. At the same time, he is perfectly aware that it is the hardest to deal with, since this act needs the viewer to make a rational -and in a sense poetical- leap. “Having explored the awakening of love in the ages 16-18, I retrace the beginning of everything, the first love chills between two teenagers. I wanted to depict that stage when things are so easy. In that age, the only thing that matters is desire”, he said.
On the film title, he said that apart from the obvious biblical reference (note that the original title in French relates to The Book of Genesis, but also means “birth, nascence” in everyday speech), it is about the beginning, the start, the first moment when we come close to someone else. “It is one of the most meaningful moments in life. Besides, as my fellow countryman Leonard Cohen had said, love is the only engine of survival”, he noted.
The next question was about the period when the plot unfolds, since neither of the two young main characters possesses any kind of cutting-edge technology devices. Philippe Lesage explained that it is on purpose that the time frame remains unspecified, since his wish is to send a universal and timeless message. “I am trying to build a personal universe and specifying time can often prove an obstacle. I mostly wish to prove that no matter how different the lifestyle of the modern generation is, the feeling of love cannot change dramatically. I hope that viewers who share my sensibilities will experience empathy, regardless when and where the film unfolds”, he said.
Concluding, the Canadian film director reminded that the main male character in the third act, young Felix, also had a part in a previous film (that is the 2015 film The Demons), and shared with the audience one of his principal aims as to the depiction of Charlotte, the film’s leading female character. “Talking with women I know, the ones I have been involved with, my friends, and members of my family as well, I realized that almost half of them had been victims of some kind of sexual violence or abuse at some point in their lives. It would be a great delinquency from my part not to speak about how hard it is for a woman to experience the first love chills”.
The “Life Lessons” tribute is implemented through the Operational Program "Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning" and is co-financed by the European Union (European Social Fund) and Greek national funds. Its co-funded projects deal with education and employment. Some of its main goals relate to:
This is the third tribute of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival funded by the Operational Program "Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning".
A novel, special opening ceremony inaugurated the 59th Thessaloniki International Film Festival on Thursday 1st November in a stacked Olympion theatre.
A kaleidoscope of fascinating stories with education in their core is presented in 5 films of recent production that will have their Greek premiere in Thessaloniki, as part of the free-admission tribute “Life Lessons” showcased in the 59th Thessaloniki International Film Festival.
