Discoveries from Greece World Cinema

Stelios Dimitrakopoulos has 32 hours left before he loses everything. From the jazz bar he painstakingly keeps running for years, to his own family. The Romanian gangster who lent him money, now demands the debt to be paid. The middle-man and former friend, makes Stelios take care of illegal errands. His wife is seriously thinking of abandoning him, and a night club owner, not thinking about the consequences, finally starts to stand up for himself. Christmas is coming, the clock is ticking, and the tree in Stelios' house must be decorated.

Summer in Athens. Nikos is a musician with no future who takes care of a villa while the wealthy owner is out. With nothing to do, Nikos decides to invite his ex-girlfriend Sofia over and force her to tell him why they broke up a year earlier.

It concerns the sinful life and scandals of Metropolitan of Preveza, who was involved in various suspicious cases. His activity is described in the darker colors and the subject gets political dimensions, in relation to the prevailing situation within the Greek Church.

During an International Trade Fair at Thessaloniki, a mature woman, Rena (Martha Karagianni), goes there with her sister to convince her childhood friend Dinos (Dinos Iliopoulos) to have a "white wedding" so that she can inherit a large estate. Dinos though, does not accept because even though he is actually a womanizer he acts as a shy and modest man around people. Everyone there will meet a group of musicians and one of them will fall in love with the daughter of the strict manager of the company Dinos works for who is accompanied by Dinos. At some point, everyone goes to Athens where things get more complicated untill everyone finds his perfect match. In the end Rena gets her inheritance and all together they perform a musical play in a grand theater.

A bunch of restless teenagers are constantly trying to find ways to break free from poverty. All day they hang around discos and cafeterias and talking about motorcycles, women, society, etc. Only a few of them have jobs while some others are students. One day they decide to rob a wealthy man since this seems to be their last chance to get their hands on a decent amount of cash. Everything goes fine until they come across another bunch of punks and start fightibg in the streets. All of them get busted and that's when the nightmare starts... They are taken to the prison of Korydalos where they are constantly beaten and tortured by a sadistic warden who calls himself "God" (played by the ultimate god, Nikos Tsachiridis who seems to enjoy this kind of role...). The film goes on showing the filth that they face.

A rich family find their holiday island home invaded by a pair of criminals who've just escaped from the local jail.

Seven friends meet up for dinner on a full moon Friday night and deep secrets will come to the surface, shaking their lives and threatening their relationships.

During its 85-minute running time, this jarring experimental film takes a no-holds-barred look at the way women have been treated and depicted in Western art.

Iro Konstantopoulou was thirteen years old when the Germans invaded Greece. Despite her age, however, she got involved with the resistance. When she was arrested for the first time, her rich father managed to set her free, and she fell in love with a young doctor who took care of her injuries following torture. A little before the withdrawal of the Germans, she participated in the blowing up of a train that was transporting ammunition, and she was arrested again, but this time no one could save her. She was executed at the Chaïdari camp, along with forty-nine other prisoners.

In 1821, in Cinema, he records the cinematic representations of the Revolution from the first decades of the 20th century. until the present day. Despite the fact that the Revolution of 1821 constitutes the founding act of the modern Greek state, as a subject matter it is underrepresented in national film production. This is one of the points on which the research looks, which simultaneously examines the periods of concentration of films on the subject of the Revolution or, respectively, the periods of its collective silence. The purpose of the documentary is to study the ideological discourse and the cinematic language of the films with the theme of 1821, in order to highlight the function of the cinema as a carrier of Public History and as a factor in shaping the collective historical consciousness.

Through the different erotic stories of various characters, the film searches for the different types of bonds in a middle-class modern Greek family, its hopes, expectations, problems and everyday paranoia that its members encounter.

The film – documentary “Shooting vs Shooting” presents a group of astonishing stories about journalists who were afflicted in the Iraq war, by following a journalist’s journey in Baghdad in 2009 and the story of a mother who seeks for an answer to the question why her son got killed while his only weapon was his camera. “Shooting vs Shooting” narrates incredible moments and adventures, reveals unknown sides to the facts and shows the dramatic stories of media workers who lost their lives, trying to freely broadcast the truth to the public opinion. Through the documentary, we witness the absurdity of war, the responsibilities of governments and armies and the atrociousness of blinded fanatics.

A pilot complicates his life with his wife and daughter when he starts an affair with another woman.

Unbeknownst to the 19th-century Greek "primitive" painter Theofilos, other painters around the world at the time were also exploring non-academic subjects, focusing on the everyday lives of ordinary persons. In the U.S., the group of painters who chose such subjects were dubbed "the Ashcan school." Though Theofilos remained unknown in his lifetime, this biographical drama explores the painter's life from his birth on the Isle of Lesbos (Lesvos) in 1868 to the time when he developed his characteristic style, following his discharge from the Greek army.

The poor fishermen of a small village in the Evros region are trying to set up a cooperative so that they can resist the relentless exploitation of the merchants who buy their catch for a pittance. Leading the effort is an educated young man, Stefanos, who strives to encourage the fishermen to overcome their hesitation.

An adulterous woman and her lover plot to murder her husband Kostas and make it look like a yachting accident. However, unknown to them, Kostas has hired a private detective to follow them and knows of their plans in advance. A deadly game of double-crossing begins and propels all three of them towards tragedy.

1654, Ottoman Empire, Greece. A Turkish Warrior arrives heavily wounded at a remote Christian female monastery and is nursed by Anthi, a young nun under the oath of silence. They fall in love against all odds. But Anthi is tormented by a dark secret. The two lovers escape in the nearby forest, where Anthi's secret is revealed.

A criminal gang operating in Greece hides a large shipment of heroine inside a statue. During transportation the statue is stolen, and a member of the gang is sent to discover the culprits.

When Singapore was founded in 1965, its leader Lee Kuan Yew famously said that it will “not only become a Metropolis, but it will last a thousand years, and it is people who calculate, and think in those terms, who deserve to survive.” Half a century on, as breakdown engulfs many of the world’s cities, Singapore carries on glamorously. But at what cost?

When Singapore was founded in 1965, its leader Lee Kuan Yew famously said that it will “not only become a Metropolis, but it will last a thousand years, and it is people who calculate, and think in those terms, who deserve to survive.” Half a century on, as breakdown engulfs many of the world’s cities, Singapore carries on glamorously. But at what cost?

Vasilis lives with his family in a small mountain village in the Greek countryside. When he is not supervising the workers on his estate, Vasilis kills time at the café drinking and gambling. The only thing that breaks Vasilis' routine is Tania, the singer at the local nightclub... There, Vasilis finds refuge from the meaninglessness of a life that seems to have been imposed on him...

Two Athenian attorneys pursue litigation for the return of the Parthenon Marbles. As the bronze statue of Athena Promakhos used to stand guard in front of the Parthenon, both must find the courage to stand in defense of what they love.

Elizabeth, a sexually yielding policewoman, is miserable in the narrow-minded town in which she's living. While Rita, a lonely eel-hatchery worker, is trying to escape from the sticky situations of her life.

Philip (Giorgos Constantinou), a shy and dignified accountant and English teacher, lives with his mother (Zoli Garbi) and his two siblings in the same house. His and his mother's meager income, just enough to support them all. His younger brother (Alekos Tzanetakos) remains unemployed and lazy rather out of conscience, while his older brother, Kimon (Orpheus Zachos), dreams of being re-elected prefect and refuses, although a qualified accountant, to work, considering the positions demeaning and irrelevant offered to him. His tragic financial situation will be further burdened by their imminent forced move to another house. It is also the first color Greek film, edited entirely in Greece. It is based on the play "The 6th American Fleet" by Alek Sakellarios and Christos Giannakopoulos, who also wrote the screenplay, while Sakellarios directed the film.

A mistake made by the bride rejoins 4 old friends of disaster and a father in law! 5 guys go to Thassaloniki to tear everything down. A father in law gets in a hearse in order to kill a love in the making. An ex-girlfriend dances tango with her memories as a partner. A cancelled wedding and a relationship that starts with the brides vail floating at the wind of independence.

Surging crime, a virus and android assassins led by a mysterious gangster boss force special agents Ace and Nea into action.

When the general manager who possesses 70% of the shares of a steelworks learns that he is sick and has to go abroad to be cured, he hands his shares to Timoleon Adamantas (Orestis Makris), his brother, a teacher, with whom he hasn’t spoken for almost 30 years. Timoleon, being an honest and goodhearted man, aided by his brother’s secretary, Margarita (Martha Karagianni), with whom his son Andreas is in love, finds out a number of great administrative irregularities. Immediately, he throws out his brother’s number one assistant, Kleftodimos (Dionysis Papagiannopoulos) and Margarita as well and puts everything in order.

Against the backdrop of the Nazis' rapid rise to power, a Greek music student arrives in 1936 Berlin and becomes a cabaret singer. In Europe, WWII rages on, and joining the Resistance is the only way to fight back. Will Nelly do her part?

Giorikas and Kostikas, Pontian immigrants, return to Greece from Germany. Their goal is to understand why jokes are told about Pontians and who spreads them. They learn that some Pontians are responsible. Kostikas stops the circulation of the jokes until he realizes how sad life is without them, so he allows them to be circulated again.

A girl from the slums of Athens becomes a famous singer while falling in love with her songwriter.

In Cyprus, an EOKA fighter (against the British Administration), Kyriakoulis, is imprisoned by the British. His comrades kidnap the son of a friend of the British Administrator in retaliation. Plans to help Kyriakoulis escape fails and the British hang him. Kyriakoulis mother intervenes magnanimously and the fighters free their prisoner.

The life and action of Laskarina Bouboulina. Captain Lascarina decides to organize the revolution in Spetses and to participate herself, despite her double widowhood. In the struggle for the liberation of Greece, she gives all her property and fighting along with her lads.

A promotional video directed by Athina Rachel Tsangari and narrated by Willem Dafoe about the history and the importance of the Museum Benaki.

As a coincidental event unites a publisher and a hospital manager, sinister revelations entangle the couple with the aspiration of an editor-in-chief. Will he unearth the truth? After all, almost everybody has a skeleton in the closet.

A corpse is found at Anna's home, and she must explain the criminal investigator how she spent the night. And one story leads to another.

A feud develops between a taverna with bouzoukia and a club next door that plays modern music.

Three poor friends hope to achieve something good in their lives. One day they meet three girls. They pretend to be rich and go out with them. When they learn the truth, the girls want to move away, but a rich Greek man from abroad, who is looking for a bride to marry, comes to Greece and decides to help the situation.

Several directors from countries of the region were invited to create stories taking place in and around the beautiful city of Istanbul, in the vein of “Paris, je t’aime” and “New York, I love you”. They come together to remind viewers that Istanbul’s history does not belong only to the people of Turkey.

A group of dodgy businessmen and their girlfriends/mistresses discover a container drifting next to their yacht with 3 escaped prisoners inside,all are brought aboard and procede to terrorise and humiliate their hosts until rather predictably the victims begin to fight back and turn the tables on their crackpot captors.

Sotiris is a financial editor at a local newspaper, living a mundane life, until he locks eyes with the gorgeous Olga at a Russian expat Christmas party. Unable to get her out his head, he starts looking for the girl of his dreams, only to find himself immersed in a dark and dangerous world, where the difference between illusion and reality will soon be made abundantly clear.With Zenia Kaplan as the proverbial femme fatale, Savvas Karydas explores the twin concepts of escape/dream and dead-end/deceit. From this unique perspective, Illusion could easily be perceived as a film noir. At the same time, it’s a film about contemporary credit crunch societies and their effect on relationships and attitudes, imposing a new moral order where love and friendship are tested, redefined and demystified.

A streetwise investment broker, who has been tricked into accepting a counterfeit $100 bill by a statuesque con woman, falls in love with her. Against all logic, he refuses to turn her in to the police. Is there a future between them?

Goran and Julia, Russian and Albanian, are two teenagers immigrant second generation, two children with dreams and ambition to escape the environment grew. Things for both young people will become even more complicated when their paths meet. Love is lightning, but the two worlds collide, threatening to destroy the first thrill they feel about each other.

Mary, a bodybuilder, is preparing for her last competition in Hamburg. Between demanding workouts, work, and single-parent family obligations, she reevaluates her relationship with her body. The film observes her over an extended period of changes, as her obsession with physical perfection shifts toward a growing spiritual need.

The Athos peninsula in Greece is one of Europe's last secrets. Over 2000 monks live on Athos - cut off from the outside world. Access is denied to women, tourists are not welcome. Only workers and pilgrims can obtain a visa. The "Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain" attracts people who feel like they are missing something from their modern lives. With the help of three Athos monks, "Athos - A Taste of Heaven" tells the story of the island and its inhabitants in a unique filmed diary style. The film's guiding theme is the path we as people have to find and follow - each and everyone for themselves. "First we must heal our own souls, only then we can help others", is one of Father Galaktions core messages. He lives as a hermit on the holy mountain. Not all monks, however, live as secluded and demure as Father Galaktion. The film team is also received by Father Epiphanios - a gifted and poetic cook who certainly does not disdain the pleasures of life.

In this disturbing family drama, a prosperous middle-aged farmer takes up gambling and whoring at the expense of his devoted second wife. Meanwhile, his son the pervert becomes fascinated with the family's maid, a deaf-mute.

The assassin of a prominent trade unionist takes a conservative MP hostage, throwing the government into a state of disarray.

A brief altercation in a railroad car will lead to a golden opportunity, as the famous actor, Kostas Chatzis (Kostas Hatzihristos), and the cheerful countryman, Thimios, are like two peas in a pod. Will the popular actor learn his lesson?

During the dark years of the German Occupation of Greece, Anna is separated from her only son, Dimitris, after the untimely death of her wealthy husband. As a result, her mother-in-law takes the boy with her to raise him. However, the elder Dimitris, the last scion of an old aristocratic family, leaves his home and his domineering grandmother to become a singer. Suddenly, after reaching the peak of his career, the rich and famous Dimitris disappears without a trace. Could there be a terrible secret behind Dimitris' unexplained disappearance?

A poor taxi driver works hard in order to pay off his car and to marry his fiancee.

In this Greek romantic comedy, Athens bus lines manager Voulis (Giorgos Ninios) has given up trying to salvage his marriage. Instead, he devotes time and energy to feeling-up cute commuters, eventually developing a fascination with one passenger in particular.

On the morning of the World Cup final, Karamanos, an employee of the Greek Telecommunications Organization (TOE), connects his commander's personal computer to a devilishly complex and explosive device. He threatens to blow up the floor and the satellite dishes above if he is not allowed to appear on the national network 10 minutes before the football match to denounce all the wrongs that plague the lives of Greek citizens and make them victims of a partisan and corrupt state.

The Bastards have left the city behind. Their house in the countryside smells of nothing but summer. Five girls and five boys living in the moment, for the moment. No outsider comes around here, and all the insiders take turns standing guard, kissing each other, playing dead. They are still kids. They are your kids. They are our Bastards.

Charming, affluent--with his father's money--and self-assured, a frivolous son who can have any woman he desires falls head over heels for a beautiful Italian student; however, she is a hard nut to crack. Will he manage to impress her?

Alexander, a tribal warlord and former political prisoner, kidnaps British tourists, holding them for ransom until Britain and the Greek puppet government in Athens meet his demand for amnesty for his band of freedom fighters.

In a small village, Michalis, who suffers from amnesia, does not remember that he and three of his fellow villagers were surrounded by the enemy. Specifically, on their way back to their village after the collapse of the Albanian front and the German invasion, somewhere in the Larissa area, the men were supposed to meet up with resistance fighters. However, Michalis does not remember the trap they fell into, where his two companions were killed and he himself was wounded, while the fourth was absent. Yannis had disappeared but suddenly returns to his home, and his presence upsets Michalis. Yannis' father quickly understands why: his son, in order to save his own skin, had betrayed his friends to the Germans. An honest man and a fiery patriot, he tries his son on charges of high treason, finds him guilty, and executes him.

Maria and Loukas decide at the same time and for no apparent reason to respectively run away from their homes. Each of them has to deal with their personal problems: Maria is stuck in a wealthy marriage with Dimitris while raising their two children. Loukas is unemployed and full of debts. Both of them run away from their personal issues, both of them begin wandering in modern day Athens. They come across a series of controversial events and meet with strange characters. Furthermore, various people seem to be on their track; Maria is followed by two policemen. Loukas is followed by a weird stranger dressed in black, Joseph, who desperately wants something from him.