The Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, a leading force in Southeast Europe, celebrates the art of documentary through a program of films, events and initiatives. The 24th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival will be held from Thursday 10 to Sunday 20 March where 233 full-length and short film documentaries will be screened. Amongst the programme, 77 Greek produced full-length and short docs are screened as part of the three competition sections – International Competition, Newcomers and >>Film Forward – the Open Horizons section of the international program, as well as the Platform and From screen to Screen subsections.
Ahead of the 24th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival Modern Times Review spoke with Director of the Greek Programme, Eleni Androutopoulou# on this year’s homegrown productions, the place of Greek documentary within its wider landscape, and more.
Aside from Greece being the primary country of production, what sort of criteria do the selections in the Greek Programme meet in order to feature?
Thessaloniki Documentary Festival is the vital and essential «habitat» for the promotion of Greek documentary, having drastically contributed to its evolution in the 24 years of its Festival course. The selection of the Greek program aims at an overall and complete showcasing of each year’s Greek doc production, bringing forth its multifaceted aspects and distinguishing features, as well as the various thematics tackled by Greek directors. In addition, TDF’s goal is to bring Greek filmmakers in contact with the international film community that takes part in each year’s Festival and displays a keen interest in Greek doc production. The selection of films is revolving around the Festival’s key objective, which is none other than to boost the Greek movie industry, allowing it to take centre stage both within Greek borders, but also on the international stage.
In curating this year’s films, what common themes have you seen running throughout Greek documentary?
The beginning of the coronavirus spreading in Greece coincided with the 22nd TDF, leading to its unavoidable cancellation. Unfortunately, Greek documentary was one of the first fields of art and life to be hit by this unprecedented condition. No surprise, therefore, that the pandemic is a recurring topic for Greek artists who strive to keep track of it, comprehend it and convey its impact on all aspects of our life. Moreover, this year’s large-scale production – both in terms of quantity and quality – affirms the unquenching need of filmmakers for expression, as well as the dynamics of the documentary genre amidst times of difficulty. Other time-honoured thematics, which never seem to be missing from our world’s agenda, are also present, such as the refugee drama, human rights, historical topics, issues of equality and freedom, the financial and social crisis etc. We were happy to notice that Greek filmmakers are more eager to experiment both genre-wise and in terms of aesthetics, breaking free from traditional forms and moving on to more uncharted film territories.
What do you think the legacy of Greek documentary is to the wider documentary world? Is there a specific look, feel, or approach that can define «traditional» Greek documentary? If so, what are some examples?
As Greek documentary is a «craftsmanship» genre, mostly based on personal effort and the personal take of the directors rather than technical means, what stands out in Greek docs is their intense human-centred glance, the rapport they build with their protagonists and the way they embrace and highlight the stories they wish to unfold. With a blend of persistence, love, realism and boldness, Greek documentaries always find a unique way to tell their stories and speak directly to the heart of the audience.
What do you feel are the greatest challenges to documentary production in Greece?
The two most pivotal goals for Greek documentary is to keep on claiming and winning its spot on the international scene and film community while strengthening its bond with the audience both in the dark theatres and in the field of platforms and the new distribution media. Important steps have been made in various directions, such as international coproductions, consistent participation at international festivals and distribution in theatres. Nevertheless, the room and the ingredients for even a bigger success do exist.
What have been some of your favourite documentaries from Greece over the years?
I have the privilege each year to discover new films that get me excited and fill me with joy, films that we’ll have the chance to present to the audience, films that I will revisit over the years, as points of reference. I will go on to cite an example of this year’s program: nine years after its first screening, we decided to host a universally accessible screening of the film The Grocer by Dimitris Koutsiabasakos# (with audio description [AD] for the blind and visually impaired and SDH [Subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing]). In addition, as part of the «Motherland, I See You» tribute, within the framework of our collaboration with the Hellenic Film Academy, 12 iconic Greek films that laid the groundwork for Greek documentary film will be screened.
