The toxic masculinity of the Greek countryside, the expression of transgender identity in a hostile environment, and the glamorous, fake world of the trap scene that glorifies wealth and demeans women, (co ) starred in this year’s 47th Drama Short Film Festival awards ( 47th DISFF).
The big winner of the night was Dimitris Moutsiakas for his film “Gekkas” which won the Golden Dionysus, as well as the script and photography awards, automatically getting the “ticket” to participate in the Oscar process. Set in a Greek village, the film stars a 12-year-old boy who bonds with a dog, but is “crushed” by the patriarchy and masculinity stereotypes expressed by his violent hunter father (played by Nikos Georgakis).
Another version of toxic masculinity is expressed through ‘MJ’, the film of the award-winning director of George Fourtounis starring a trapper who wants everyone to love him – a commentary on the phenomenon of terrible resonance that has today which trap millions of followers. In the lead role is the amazing Giorgos Katsis, who also won the male performance award. “An actor”, as Mr. Fourtounis said, “who is a special case: the son of immigrants from Albania, who grew up with many difficulties in Philadelphia and is proud to live from his work “.
For the first time in the history of the Drama Festival, the prize for the first female role was given to a trans actress: Nasia Synteta for “Honeymoon” directed by Alki Papastathopoulos, who also took the Special Committee Award and Drama Queer. Alki spoke of his inspiration, the murder of Zackie Oh Kostopoulos, “a terrible crime that we cry to this day,” and dedicated the Onassis Culture Award he also received, “to all the queer and trans people who killed in Palestine”.
Alkais Spyros’ film “Stronani ton paradisos” won the documentary award. Upon receiving their awards, some of the winners critically commented on the burning issues of the current cinema, such as the issue of the (non) screening of the film “Stray Bodies” in neighboring Kavala, the replacement of the committee for in the Greek nomination at the Oscars. , the preservation of the use of “Iris” by EKPA students, as well as the new organization resulting from the merger of EKK and EKOME.
The jury of the National Competition Department is composed of the writer, translator, film theorist and director Achillea Kyriakides (chairman), the director Irini Vahliotis, the general manager of the Rialto Theater Alexis Vassiliou, the film critic and co-owner on flix.gr Leda Galanou and the actress Marina Siotou.
“In all the films we found technical qualities, narrative skill, contemporary subject matter that deals with critical issues of our time, such as inclusion, gender, family relations, teenage anxiety , loss, violence and, above all, love. We would be happy, however, to see more documentaries in the official program”, said the committee members and hope “the important problems in the cinematographic space of Greece that hinders all this creative energy, promoting modern Greek cinema as the main export product of Greece, will be resolved as soon as possible”.
The Grand Prix of the International Competition Department, led by the famous editor Giorgos Mavropsaridis, won “Clamor” (France) by Salome Da Souza, which will also automatically enter the Oscar process. It is worth mentioning that two Greek women distinguished themselves in the International Competition: Dafni Hairetaki won the award for the best film in SE Europe for her film “What we ask for a statue is that it doesn’t work”, while Konstantina Kotzamani won the director’s award. for “What Mary doesn’t know”.
The awards ceremony of the 47th International Short Drama Film Festival took place at the “Antonis Papadopoulos” amphitheater of the Municipal Conservatory in the city, in the presence of Deputy Minister of Culture Jason Fotilas.
The artistic director Yannis Sakaridis thanked all his colleagues, whom he even called on stage, the creators “but also the 1,000 people of Drama who came to see the films of the Cinematographic Workshop of Drama “.
A greeting was given by the honorable Metropolitan of Drama Dorotheos, while after the floor was taken by the mayor of Drama and president of the Cultural Organization of the Drama Short Film Festival, George Papadopoulos, who said that the 47th Drama Festival was recorded “as a the most successful of the last five years. It’s important to get better every year.” Congratulated by Mr. Papadopoulos the awardees and made a special reference “to the unsung heroes of the event: the volunteers”.
On going up to the podium, the Deputy Minister of Culture Iason Fotilas said, among other things: “Another successful event has ended, even if the little adventure does not end. A meeting that does not only care about Drama but extends throughout Greece, where many people watch movies online and for free. Therefore, it is an international institution with an opinion and prestige that promotes contemporary concerns and connects professionals in the field”.
The vice-president of the Cultural Organization of the Drama Short Film Festival, Petros Paraskevaidis, after making a brief review of the history of the festival, gave some impressive figures about the traffic of the platform: “One million visitors are registered on the platform, and more than 100,000 unique users . Every minute 500 people watch a movie. These numbers are unimaginable.”
