Press Release Archives - Ελληνική Ακαδημία Κινηματογράφου

CINEMA REDISCOVERED

Posted on 2026-09-072026-09-07 by Mei Karamanidi

The Hellenic Film Academy presents

CINEMA REDISCOVERED

Greek Cinema as You’ve Never Seen It Before

15 September – 20 October 2026

This autumn, the Hellenic Film Academy invites audiences to Rediscover Cinema through a series of screenings featuring more than 50 significant films in 8 cities across Greece. Fiction and documentary films, from the 1950s to the present day, come together in an eclectic programme of five sections curated by distinctive voices from the world of cinema.

The Curators

Yorgos Krassakopoulos, film critic and Head of Programming at the Thessaloniki International Film and Documentary Festivals, presents MIRROR/IMAGE, a selection of Greek and European films shown in pairs, focusing on the unspoken dialogues between filmmakers.
Afroditi Nikolaidou, Assistant Professor, Department of Communication and Media Studies, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, curates ATHENS IN THE 1990s AND 2000s: A CITY IN-BETWEEN?, featuring films that capture the transformation of Athens during the years of the crisis.
Dionyssis Samiotis, producer, Tanweer Productions, presents BOX OFFICE, a selection of some of the biggest commercial successes in Greek cinema.
Marisha Triantafyllidou and Eva Samioti, actresses, have jointly curated FATHERLAND-RELIGION-FAMILY: WE ARE SUCH STUFF AS DREAMS ARE MADE ON, a section focusing on Greek identity.
Efthymis Filippou, screenwriter and author, presents THEM, THEN., a selection of groundbreaking Greek fiction and documentary films spanning five decades.

The Films

Their selections offer a different journey through the history of Greek cinema — not a linear one, but one marked by detours, twists and surprises. From 1953 to 2024, from Greece during the crisis and Athens in the era of migration and the Olympics, to rural life, gender relations, sexual liberation and the “sacred” family, to the ways Greek films intersect with British, French, German, Austrian cinema. From acclaimed filmmakers and box-office hits to little discoveries and the cinema of tomorrow, Cinema Rediscovered reveals a country and a filmography that keeps changing.

From acclaimed filmmakers and box-office triumphs to lesser-known discoveries that pave the way for the filmmakers and works of tomorrow, Cinema Rediscovered reveals a country — and a cinema — in a state of constant change.

Full list of films by curator, in chronological order:

Υorgos Krassakopoulos
Eyes Without a Face, Georges Franju, 1960 | Les Glaneurs et la Glaneuse, Agnès Varda, 2000 | Real Life, Panos H. Koutras, 2004 | Attenberg, Athina Rachel Tsangari, 2010 | Alps, Yorgos Lanthimos, 2011 | Stranger by the Lake, Alain Guiraudie, 2013 | Under the Skin, Jonathan Glazer, 2013 | Suntan, Argyris Papadimitropoulos, 2016 | The Trouble with Being Born, Sandra Wollner, 2020 | Stray Bodies, Elina Psykou, 2024

Dionyssis Samiotis
The Man with the Carnation, Nikos Tzimas, 1980 | Loafing and Camouflage, Nikos Perakis, 1984 | End of an Era, Antonis Kokkinos, 1994 | Balkanisateur, Sotiris Gkoritsas, 1997 | A Touch of Spice, Tassos Boulmetis, 2003 | Brides, Pantelis Voulgaris, 2004 | El Greco, Yannis Smaragdis, 2007 | Worlds Apart, Christopher Papakaliatis, 2015

Marisha Triantafyllidou & Eva Samioti
Eva, Maria Plyta, 1953 | The Auntie from Chicago, Alekos Sakellarios, 1957 | Sweet Bunch, Nikos Nikolaidis, 1983 | Mania, Giorgos Panousopoulos, 1985 | Crystal Nights, Tonia Marketaki, 1992 | Knifer, Yannis Economidis, 2010 | Avant-Drag!, Fil Ieropoulos, 2024 | In the Sky of Nothingness with the Least, Christos Andrianopoulos, 2023 | Avant-Drag!, Fil Ieropoulos, 2024

Efthymis Filippou
A Matter of Dignity, Michael Cacoyannis, 1958 | Macedonian Wedding, Takis Kanellopoulos, 1960 | Thasos, Takis Kanellopoulos, 1961 | Kalymnos, the Island of the Sponge Fishers, Basil Maros, 1963 | The Shepherds of Disorder, Nico Papatakis, 1967 | Kastoria, Takis Kanellopoulos, 1969 | Quest…, Errikos Andreou, 1972 | Bouzouki, Basil Maros, 1973 | Your Neighbor’s Son, Jørgen Flindt Pedersen, Erik Stephensen, 1976 | Betty, Dimitris Stavrakas, 1979 | The Cosmic Dissecting Room Show, Vasilis Vafeas, 1993 | Mourning Rock, Filippos Koutsaftis, 2000 | Anaparastasis: The Life and Work of Jani Christou, Kostis Zouliatis, 2012

The Screenings

The screenings will take place in cinemas and cultural venues, both indoor and outdoor, in Athens, Chania, Larissa, Patras, Rethymno, Thessaloniki, Veria and Volos with the presence of the curators and invited filmmakers, artists, cultural professionals and other contributors, with the aim of creating an open dialogue with audiences.

The programme’s partner organisations are the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, the 32nd Athens International Film Festival Opening Nights, Cinedoc Documentary Festival 2026–27, and Chania Film Festival 2026.

The official launch of the programme in Athens will take place on Wednesday, 16 September, at Stoa Culture, in the presence of the curators and contributors to the project, followed by a screening of Balkanisateur by Sotiris Goritsas.

The Cinema Rediscovered programme will conclude with a special screening of Theo Angelopoulos’ iconic Landscape in the Mist, which won the European Film Academy Award for Best Film in 1989, on a date and at a venue to be announced shortly.

Audiences can find the full programme, detailed information about the films and the special guests attending each screening on the Hellenic Film Academy website.

Cinema Rediscovered is part of the official programme of events leading up to the 39th European Film Awards in Athens, organised in collaboration with the Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center – Creative Greece (EKKOMED).

The European Film Awards ceremony, which will take place in January 2027 at the Greek National Opera at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, is a major international cultural event and a unique opportunity to showcase Greek filmmaking and highlight Greece as a dynamic hub for film creation in Europe.

Ticket Prices

Admission per screening: €5 | Reduced: €3
Village Cinemas – admission per screening: €7 | Reduced: €5

FULL PROGRAMME AND INFORMATION

Iris Close-Up: masterclass with Vicky Krieps and Anna Hints

Posted on 2026-06-042026-06-05 by EAK

The Hellenic Film Academy launches new international initiative Iris Close-Up, with European Film Award Winners Vicky Krieps and Anna Hints.

In the lead-up to the 2026 Iris Awards, the Hellenic Film Academy is launching Iris Close-Up, a new public programme of conversations and masterclasses featuring some of the most compelling voices in contemporary international cinema.

Conceived as a platform for dialogue, inspiration and exchange, Iris Close-Up expands the scope of the Iris Awards beyond the annual ceremony, creating opportunities for meaningful encounters between Greek and European film professionals while strengthening the international visibility of Greek filmmaking.

This year’s edition also forms part of the wider cultural programme leading up to the European Film Awards – Athens 2027, which will bring Europe’s most prestigious film event to the Greek capital in January 2027. Iris Close-Up and a series of forthcoming initiatives are included in a broader programme developed by the Hellenic Film Academy in collaboration with and supported by the Hellenic Film and Audiovisual Center (EKKOMED), the organisation responsible for hosting the European Film Awards in Greece.

The inaugural edition of Iris Close-Up welcomes two exceptional and internationally acclaimed European artists: filmmaker Anna Hints and actress Vicky Krieps, who will each present a masterclass at Onassis Stegi on Tuesday, 16 June. Admission is free to the public.

ANNA HINTS

Creative Fire
16:30–18:00

What does it take to create work that burns with passion, and how can you keep that fire alive without burning out?

Anna Hints, director of Smoke Sauna Sisterhood—winner of Best Director at Sundance and the European Film Academy Award for Best Documentary 2023—joins us for an intimate moderated conversation about the inner life of a filmmaker. From the rituals and silences that feed creativity, to the cost of radical vulnerability on screen, Anna reflects on how to stay creatively alive in a world that demands constant output. Moderated by: Leda Galanou, film critic (Flix.gr)

VICKY KRIEPS

Silence
18:30–20:00

Multiple award-winning actress Vicky Krieps —Best Actress at Cannes and at the European Film Awards for Corsage— invites us into the quiet spaces where she has always felt most at home.

“As a young film enthusiast and later young acting student I always felt more drawn to the furniture, the landscape, the animals, the sky & the light rather than the actor, the dialogue or the performance and I always wondered why. Like in ‘La Belle et la Bête’ from Cocteau; the most intriguing thing to me were the moving hands in the wall. And then I realised: it was because they were silent. Because something was able to travel, something was conveyed in this space where we (the people) forget what it is about, where it is happening or why. Quietly watching from the sidelines.”

Venue
Onassis Stegi
107 Syngrou Avenue, Athens

Admission
Free admission with advance registration: https://tickets.onassis.org/en/Organizer/sgt/Portal

Both masterclasses will be held in English with simultaneous interpretation into Greek.

The 2026 Iris Awards Ceremony will take place on 17 June 2026.

Follow the Hellenic Film Academy
Instagram & Facebook: @hellenicfilm

The HFA Celebrates Greek Cinema Ahead of the European Film Awards

Posted on 2026-06-162026-09-06 by EAK

The Hellenic Film Academy (HFA) is launching an ambitious initiative to celebrate and promote Greek cinema in the lead-up to one of Europe’s most prestigious cultural events: the 39th European Film Awards, to be hosted in Athens in January 2027.

Running from June through December 2026, the HFA’s multi-layered programme of events will include film screenings, masterclasses, educational workshops and networking activities featuring leading Greek and European film professionals. The initiative is implemented with the support and collaboration of the Hellenic Film and Audiovisual Center (EKKOMED), the organisation responsible for hosting the European Film Awards in Greece.

The programme aims to showcase Greek cinema as a vibrant and integral part of contemporary European culture, introduce wider audiences to contemporary Greek filmmaking, and build momentum towards the European Film Awards as Athens prepares to host the ceremony in January 2027.

Iris Close-Up | Iris Awards

The programme opens on Tuesday, 16 June, with Iris Close-Up, a new initiative connected to the Iris Awards and designed to establish a recurring platform for dialogue and exchange around contemporary cinema.

Its inaugural edition will feature two acclaimed European filmmakers in two masterclasses at the Onassis Stegi, with free admission for the general public.

Award-winning filmmaker Anna Hints, recipient of the 2023 Sundance Directing Award and the European Film Award for Best Documentary for Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, and acclaimed actress Vicky Krieps—winner of the European Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in Corsage (2022), directed by Marie Kreutzer, and internationally known for Phantom Thread (2017), opposite Daniel Day-Lewis, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson—will share their personal perspectives on the creative process.

Anna Hints – “Creative Fire”: What does it take to create work that burns with passion—and how can that creative fire be sustained?
Tuesday, 16 June | 16:30–18:00, Onassis Stegi – Small Stage

Vicky Krieps – “Silence”: Vicky Krieps invites audiences into the quiet spaces where she has always felt most at home.
Tuesday, 16 June | 18:30–20:00, Onassis Stegi – Small Stage

The following evening, at the Iris Awards ceremony, Anna Hints and Vicky Krieps will present the awards for Best Fiction Feature and Best Documentary. The ceremony will also be attended by Matthijs Wouter Knol, Chief Executive Officer and Director of the European Film Academy, reflecting the close relationship between the Hellenic Film Academy and the wider European film community.

Partnership with ERT

In collaboration with the Hellenic Film Academy, ERTFLIX will present a special collection entitled “Cinema Unites Us”, featuring films that have either won or been nominated for a European Film Award or an Iris Award. The collection will be available to stream free of charge throughout July.

At the same time, journalists Alexandros Romanos Lizardo and Depy Vrettou will present special features and podcasts dedicated to nominated films through ERT News Radio 105.8 and the ERTecho platform via the programmes Cinepώς and Music in 24 Frames.

Greek Cinema, Rediscovered

Some films we know by heart. Others are still waiting to be discovered.

Through Greek Cinema, Rediscovered, the Hellenic Film Academy invites audiences across Greece to experience Greek cinema anew through a nationwide screening programme featuring more than fifty landmark fiction and documentary films spanning the 1950s to the present day.

The programme is organised around five thematic sections, each curated by a distinguished figure from the Greek film community:

Yorgos Krassakopoulos, film critic and Head of Programme at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, curates MIRROR / IMAGE, pairing Greek and European films to reveal the unspoken dialogues between filmmakers.
Aphrodite Nikolaidou, Professor of Communication and Media Studies, curates ΑTHENS 1990S & 2000S:THE CITY IN BETWEEN?, exploring the transformation of Athens through cinema.
Producer and distributor Dionysis Samiotis presents BOX OFFICE, celebrating the biggest commercial successes of Greek cinema.
Actresses Marisha Triantafyllidou and Eva Samioti, representing different generations, co-curate WE ARE SUCH STUFF AS DREAMS ARE MADE ON, focusing on Greek identity through film.
Screenwriter Efthimis Filippou curates THEM THEN, a selection of groundbreaking Greek fiction and documentary films spanning five decades.

As part of the programme, a special screening of Theo Angelopoulos’ Landscape in the Mist will celebrate the landmark film that received the European Film Academy’s Best Film Award in 1989. The screening will be introduced by Konstantinos Kyriakos, Professor of Theatre and Greek Cinema History, and will take place in Athens and Patras.

The nationwide programme will run from 15 September to 30 October, taking place in cinemas and cultural venues in Athens and other cities across Greece. Screenings will be accompanied by discussions with filmmakers and film professionals.

Film Factory 2026

The programme concludes with Film Factory, the Hellenic Film Academy’s established educational initiative, returning in an expanded format.

Between 2–5 December 2026, at the Athens Conservatoire, award-winning Greek and European filmmakers will share their creative journeys through real stories of filmmaking, exploring every stage of the filmmaking process—from the first idea to meeting audiences.

The four-day programme will feature masterclasses, workshops and networking events, culminating in a closing celebration open to everyone who loves Greek cinema.

Athens at the Heart of European Cinema

These initiatives form part of the official programme leading up to the 39th European Film Awards in Athens, organised in collaboration with EKKOMED.

The European Film Awards ceremony, to be held in January 2027 at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, will be one of the most significant international cultural events ever hosted in Greece. Beyond celebrating the achievements of European cinema, it offers a unique opportunity to showcase Greek filmmaking to the international community and further establish Greece as a dynamic hub for cinematic creation in Europe.