10 years of Greek Short Stories: Watch the films awarded by the AIFF free of charge

 

Celebrating 10 years of the Greek Short Stories section, from Thursday 23rd September the Festival will host on its platform (online.aiff.gr) all of the short films which have one the Best Film award in previous years. 

Specifically, the following short films will be screened:  
“Chamomile” by Neritan Zinxhiria 
“Red Hulk” by Asimina Proedrou 
“II” by Efthimis Kosemund 
“Simon Says” by Nikos Tseberopoulos 
“Limbo” by Konstantina Kotzamani 
“Copa-Loca” by Christos Massalas 
“Hector Malot: The Last Day of the Year“ by Jacqueline Lentzou 
“The Distance Between Us and the Sky “ by Vasilis Kekatos  
“The End of Suffering (A Proposal)” by Jacqueline Lentzou), 

The above films will be available free of charge for a maximum of 300 screenings each. This is a unique chance to watch some of the best Greek short films of recent years, all in one place, free of charge on the Festival’s platform. 

We would like to thank the directors and producers for kindly allowing us to screen their films. 

Visit the Festival’s online platform here: 
https://online.aiff.gr/

Watch the Greek short films here: 
https://online.aiff.gr/collection/10-Χρόνια-Μικρές-Ιστορίες

A few words about the films: 

“Chamomile” by Neritan Zinxhiria 

She is alone. The  world of the living is far away, while the world of the dead smells of chamomile.  

The director 

Neritan Zinxhiria was born in 1989 in Tirana. A year later he emigrated to Greece with his family. In 2008 he was awarded the Best Newcomer Director at the International Drama Short Film Festival for his first film "The Best Bride". His second film "Chamomile" won the Golden Horseman Award at the Dresden International Film Festival and had an impressive run of over 20 awards and 150 participations in film festivals. In Greece, the film won six awards, including the Best Film Award at the International Drama Film Festival, the Best Film Award at the Athens International Film Festival and the Best Film of the Year Award from Hellenic Film Academy. His third film "The Time of A Young Man About To Kill", which was shot in Italy, was screened for the first time in Busan, South Korea. His latest film, shot in the Balkans, has been successfully screened at festivals and museums around the world (Bristol International Film Festival, Experimental Film Festival in Paris / Centre Pompidou). 

“Red Hulk” by Asimina Proedrou 

Giorgos lives alone in Athens. He is meant to be studying but has to work.  He lacks purpose, self-confidence, identity  and acceptance. He fills the void within as “RED HULK” as he is known at his football team's fan club. That is until the day he becomes involved in racial violence, resulting in new dead-ends, dilemmas and choices.  

The director 

Asimina was born in 1982 in Athens. She studied music (2001 - piano degree), Economics at the Athens University of Economics and Business (degree in 2005 and postgraduate in 2007) and film directing (degree in 2013 and postgraduate in 2016). She has attended numerous seminars, including the master classes of John Truby (2015 - London) and Guillermo Arriaga (2015 - London). Her short film, RED HULK (2013), which she completed (screenwriting, directing, production) as part of her undergraduate studies, won the Golden Dionysus at the Drama International Short Film Festival (2013), the Best short film award at the AIFF (2013), has participated in over sixty international festivals, including Clermont-Ferrand (International Competition 2014), and has won nine international awards. She is currently completing her first feature film, Behind the Haystacks (temporary title), which is in post-production. She is a graduate of Talents Sarajevo 2015 and Berlinale Talents  2016. 

“II” by Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis 

An old groom walks in the open horizon towards a bride waiting for him. They meet but the distance between them starts to grow once again. 

The director 

Born with dual Greek and German citizenship, Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis studied Computer Science in Athens and then Contemporary Arts at Le Fresnoy - Studio National in France. His films have been screened and awarded at major festivals such as Venice, Locarno, Clermont-Ferrand, art venues such as the Forum des Images, the Centre Pompidou, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, and have been distributed on platforms such as Festival Scope and MUBI. He is a member of the Hellenic Film Academy and an alumnus of the Berlinale and Sarajevo Talents. He is currently developing his first feature film. 

“Simon Says” by Nikos Tseberopoulos 

Simon lives a lonely life in London, alienated from his environment. Some nights of the month he pays visits to his internet friends. 

The director 

Following his studies in Psychology he wrote and directed his first short film I Phoni (2012). In 2013 he moved to London to study cinema. At the end of his studies he wrote and directed his second short film Simon Says (2015), which was selected by several festivals around the world, sold on a national network in Japan, won the Best Film award at the Athens International Film Festival, and the "Greeks of the World" Award at the Drama International Film Festival. His third short film  Soul Food (2020), was selected by the European script development program, Midpoint Shorts, and was funded by the Greek and French Film Centres. He is currently in the process of writing a script for his first feature film. 

“Limbo” by Konstantina Kotzamani 

The leopard shall lie down with the goat. The wolves shall live with the lambs. And the young boy will lead them. 12+1 children and the carcass of a whale washed ashore. 

The director 

Born in Komotini, Konstantina Kotzamani initially studied pharmacy at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and then graduated from the Film Department of the School of Fine Arts of Thessaloniki. Her films have premiered at major international film festivals such as the Cannes Film Festival, the Berlin Film Festival, the Locarno Film Festival and have won numerous awards. She has been twice honored by the Hellenic Film Academy with the award for best short film while she was nominated for the corresponding award of the European Academy EFA (European Academy Awards) in 2015 and 2017 respectively. 

“Copa-Loca” by Christos Massalas 

This is the story of Copa-Loca, an abandoned Greek summer resort. Paulina is the girl at the heart of Copa-Loca. Everyone cares for her and she cares about everyone - in every possible way. 

The director 

Born in 1986, he studied at the London Film School, LFS and Kingston University, London. He has worked as a director, screenwriter and editor. His short films have been selected at over 200 international film festivals (Cannes, AFI Fest, New Directors / New Films, Sarajevo, Reykjavik, etc.), have won awards and have been shown on television and on online platforms (Nowness, Vimeo Staff Picks…). In 2016 he participated in the Filmmakers Academy of the 69th Locarno Festival. His latest short film "Copa-Loca" won the Hellenic Film Academy Award and was nominated for the awards of the European Film Academy. His first feature-length screenplay, "Broadway," was selected for the Sundance Screenwriters Lab and the Atelier Cinefondation of the Cannes Film Festival. 

“Hector Malot: The Last Day of the Year“ by Jacqueline Lentzou 

New Year's eve dawns in a moon-kissed car, and Sofia has a dream that she tells no one: while walking on a desert, she gets to know that she is sick. She pretends she doesn't care. Has she lost her heart? 

The director 

Jacqueline Lentzou (Athens, 1989), a graduate of the London Film School (2013), is a screenwriter / director. Her work revolves around non-traditional family structures, the dream, love and the lack of it. She likes to experiment with changes in form, duration and emotions. Her short films have competed and won awards at festivals abroad (FOX, Locarno 2016 | HIWA, Berlin 2017 | HECTOR MALO: THE LAST DAY OF THE YEAR, Cannes 2018 | The End of Suffering (A Proposal 2020), Locarno. Vienna, Montreal, Helsinki and Nijmegen have held tributes to her work. Her first feature film, 'MOON, 66 QUESTIONS', premiered at the recent Berlin Film Festival. 

“The Distance Between Us and the Sky “ by Vasilis Kekatos 

Nightime on the old highway. Two strangers meet for the first time at an old gas station. One has stopped to gas up his bike, while the other is just stranded. He needs €22.50 to get back to Athens.  The same cost of the distance that separates them from the sky. 

The director 

Vasilis Kekatos, born in 1991, is a screenwriter, director and scholarship holder at the Sundance Institute. In 2018, with his film "The Silence of the Dying Fish" he participated and distinguished himself in major international festivals, such as Locarno, Sundance, Palm Springs and Tallinn Black Nights. With his recent film "The Distance Between Us and the Sky" he won the Palme d'Or - Best Short Film and Queer Palm - Short Film at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival. The film continued its festival run with major stops in Sarajevo, Clermont-Ferrand, AFI and Telluride, for which it was chosen by Barry Jenkins. During the quarantine period of 2020, responding to the invitation of the Onassis Foundation, Vassilis created "As you sleep the world empties", a film that was a great success online and in the process secured distribution in cinemas. Rave reviews of his work have been published from time to time in well-known international publications such as the Hollywood Reporter, the New York Times, Screen Daily and Sight & Sound. In addition to film directing, Vassilis has also been involved in artistic photography, while he was recently commissioned by Vogue Greece and Gucci to photograph the international model Winnie Harlow. He is currently preparing his first feature film. 

“The End of Suffering (A Proposal)” by Jacqueline Lentzou  

Sofia is panicky, again. The Universe decides to contact her. An other-worldly dialogue. A planet symphony for Mars, where people dream awake and fight for love. 

The director 

Jacqueline Lentzou (Athens, 1989), a graduate of the London Film School (2013), is a screenwriter / director. Her work revolves around non-traditional family structures, the dream, love and the lack of it. She likes to experiment with changes in form, duration and emotions. Her short films have competed and won awards at festivals abroad (FOX, Locarno 2016 | HIWA, Berlin 2017 | HECTOR MALO: THE LAST DAY OF THE YEAR, Cannes 2018 | The End of Suffering (A Proposal 2020), Locarno. Vienna, Montreal, Helsinki and Nijmegen have held tributes to her work. Her first feature film, 'MOON, 66 QUESTIONS', premiered at the recent Berlin Film Festival.