- 6th GIFF -
Sweetwater
Hall of Famer, Nat 'Sweetwater' Clifton, makes history as the first African American to sign an NBA contract, forever changing the game of basketball. In the fall of 1950, a majority of the NBA team owners vote to keep the league “white” triggering an emotional inner battle that brings New York Knicks head coach Joe Lapchick and owner of the New York Knicks Ned Irish together to break barriers and make history. The story follows Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, a Globetrotter and the best “unknown” basketball player of that era, navigating through tough times and changing the game of basketball forever when he becomes a New York Knick. A powerful and dangerous war of politics ensues when Boston Celtic owner Walter Brown shocks the sports world and drafts Duquesne African American star Chuck Cooper. In a dramatic turn of events, Washington Capitols owner Bones McKinney drafts African American player Earl Lloyd from American University. A cutthroat and competitive race ensues to see which player will become the first black basketball player to walk onto an NBA court- the “Jackie Robinson” of basketball. The triumph of the human spirit that would open doors inspiring the innovative play of iconic greats Oscar Robertson, Elgin Baylor, Connie Hawkins, Julius Irving, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and the brilliant stars of today’s great global game of basketball. FEATURE FILM Director: Martin Guigui Greek Premiere
Bird Boy
A troubled young orphan must risk everything to save his beloved ostrich from a meat farm. FEATURE FILM Director: Joel Bradley Soisson Greek Premiere
Our Wildest Days
Chloe runs away to Greece with a band of romantic outsiders. A young woman, Chloe, who, after becoming homeless, leaves Athens and meets a group of young people living unconventionally in a trailer, helping poor people. She is captivated by their ideas and her journey with them leads her to adulthood. The film is the first feature film by award-winning director Vasilis Kekatos and had its world premiere in February 2025 at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival FEATURE FILM Director: Vasilis Kekatos Greek Premiere
THE GREAT MASSACRE OF ALIMOS
The film follows a film crew making a documentary about an unexplained explosion that killed 67 people five years earlier at the Alimos Senior Citizens' Center and shook Greek society. The only conclusion the police had reached at the time was that someone had planted explosives and that it was not an accident. After the case was closed, in the five years that followed, three urban myths emerged in the local community of Alimos about who was responsible for the explosion, involving three of the victims who were at the KAPI that day. More or less, everyone agreed that one of them had taken the others with him on a suicide mission that day. But which of the three? In the investigation that the team will conduct, we will look at the stories of these three people and ultimately conclude what happened that day. FEATURE FILM Director: Athan Tomy Sklavos Greek Premiere
The Sluggard Clan
At the end of the world, there's yet another village where the living live along with the dead, and dreams are more real than reality. An allegorical fresco about love beyond the grave with poetics of magical realism confronts the Nazis and communist past of the Slovak nation. The grotesque stories of the “sluggish” family serve as a metaphor for archetypal traits that remain unchanged for centuries. Somewhere in the hills of central Slovakia three brothers live lost in time, dreams, naïveté and folly that blur the boundaries between the real world and that of their late ancestors. The only thing that conveys a sense to their futile lives is a cobweb of tragicomic relationships with their fateful women undaunted to give their lives for love. FEATURE FILM Director: Rastislav Boroš Greek Premiere
Thelisis
What are human limits and who ultimately defines them? Panagos, a man with spastic quadriplegia, and Konstantinos his trainer, are two friends who ask and challenge this question daily. One suggests and the other follows. It is unimportant who is at the beginning of the journey, but from the start, they are together until the end. Their journey? The mountain of the gods, Mount Olympus. Their destination? 2,917.85 meters above sea level MID-LENGTH FILM Directors: Petros Sofikitis, Thanasis Spyropoulos
A Lien
On the day of their green card interview, a young couple confronts a dangerous immigration process SHORT FILM Directors: Sam Cutler-Kreutz, David Cutler-Kreutz Greek Premiere
Strolling Down Brighton Pier
A young Edwardian gentleman, working as a photographer, falls madly in love with a captivating woman as she takes her daily stroll down Brighton Pier. Finally mustering the courage to approach her, he is devastated to discover that there's someone else in the picture. MUSIC VIDEO Director: Kenny McCracken Greek Premiere
Technical Difficulties
A film about the strength, beauty, suffering, oppression and liberation of women! DANCE VIDEO Director: Theresa Stone Greek Premiere
Maitighar
After a festive evening with her friends in Pokhara, Asha, a young high-school student, discreetly returns to her village. Arriving at her mother's house, she is unaware that she is about to enter the adult world. SHORT FILM Director: Marc Gurung Greek Premiere
Unfair Routes
A professional driver shares with us stories from the passengers he meets during his daily routes. As he himself says, for each passenger, the ride is not just a journey — it's a therapeutic session. Through these stories, various social issues are brought to light, such as toxic relationships, bullying, manipulative behavior, and even existential concerns. SHORT FILM Director: Giorgos Logothetis World Premiere
Skeleton Tree
One guy, one decision, one half cooked food and the belief that some things are so insignificant and oddly bitter, funny. SHORT FILM Director: Haris Zalavras
10 Cents
A young woman boards a bus on her way to an audition that could change her life. But she’s ten cents short. The inspector, strict and devoted to the Rulebook, refuses to make an exception. As the bus rolls on, their realistic clash gradually transforms into something deeper and more mysterious. The journey ceases to be just a route — it becomes a stage, a ritual, a transition. And just when everything seems in vain, magic quietly takes the lead. SHORT FILM Director: Kostas Gakis World Premiere
Only Connect
A young woman, caught between her desire for accepatance and her fear of rejection, tries to reveal a personal truth to her parents. SHORT FILM Director: Betty kostadinova
Fragmented
Qassem, a retired pioneer of journalism in Gaza, and a former political prisoner, made the impossible decision to leave his home after 25 days of genocide, to Malta. His decision to flee is not a matter of personal survival, but a desperate bid to honour his daughter's plea for a chance at a future together. Fragmented is a collection of memories of confronting the human cost of Israeli occupation and the enduring struggle for justice in Palestine. The film reminds us of the power of belonging in the face of unimaginable adversity, and the bonds that unite us in our shared desire for freedom and dignity. As Qassem contemplates the uncertain road ahead, "FRAGMENTED" offers a timely insight on the unyielding spirit of those who refuse to be defeated by oppression. SHORT FILM Directors: Tanya Marar, Balolas Carvalho
In Viadi
IN VIADI is a cinematic journey that follows a young woman in search of authenticity and true connection. Set against the dramatic backdrop of the Swiss Alps - where the African and European tectonic plates once collided - she moves between memory and momentum, finding her own rhythm in the pursuit of her true self. DANCE VIDEO Directors: Alun Meyerhans, Ellen Wolf Greek Premiere
Ruins Within Ruins
A group of dancers positions themselves between the ancient and modern ruins of the island of Crete, Greece. Drawing inspiration from its rich heritage, they craft a series of kinetic forms and patterns influenced by folk dances. These installations, whether harmonising with or contrasting against the island's culture, offer reflections on historical memory and the Cretan identity. DANCE VIDEO Director: Lefteris Parasyris
Lights Up
Lonely and working security in an empty office building on Christmas Day, Chloe scrolls past everyone else’s picture-perfect celebrations. Outside, a homeless woman tends a handmade tree, its glow flickering in the cold. When the light fades, an unlikely friendship sparks—reminding Chloe that the surest way to fight darkness is to shine light toward someone else. SHORT FILM Director: Sergio Vizuete Greek Premiere
All I Want Today
A 60-year-old organist going through a divorce attends a rock concert of her first love to see if the old flame still burns between them. SHORT FILM Director: Magda Adamowicz Greek Premiere
Dust
"dust" is a dance film that explores themes of legacy and mortality in the cycle of intergenerational caregiving. It pays tribute to the compassion, reciprocity, and unconditional love present as we guide one another into and out of this life. It depicts the experience of caring for my father as he died of cancer. DANCE VIDEO Director: Noelle Kayser Greek Premiere
The Coffee Break
Two dialogues unfold in parallel. Beneath casual words lie quiet truths and unsaid feelings. A story about human connection, unspoken endings and everything we hear in silence. A minimalist exploration of love and distance. SHORT FILM Director: Asklipios Vrachnos World Premiere
Silence
A silent ballet trained dancer acts up during a performance, aiming towards a freer path of expression. SHORT FILM Director: Olga Tsirakidou Greek Premiere
BIG FOOT MAMA - Goodbye Butterfly
The music video for Goodbye Butterfly follows an animator as he creates the story of two young lovers who dive into life too quickly and ultimately lose themselves in the process. Throughout the video, the animator shapes their narrative and conjures the band itself, intertwining live performance with animated storytelling. As the narrative unfolds, the boundaries between creation and reality blur—the animator becomes deeply absorbed in his work until the real world intervenes and wakes him from his artistic immersion. Goodbye Butterfly is a fresh single from the Slovenian rock band Big Foot Mama. A subtle spin-off of their classic rock sound, the track incorporates tango influences to tell the bittersweet story of two lovers who know they aren’t meant to stay together. They share the awareness that separation is inevitable, but choose to hold on to joy, for as long as it lasts. MUSIC VODEO Director: Ven Jemersic Greek Premiere
IDE8L
Farewell screenings at the historic Cine IDEAL. The longest-running cinema in Greece (102 years of continuous operation) “suddenly falls silent” and the music of Mimis Plessas, the most influential Greek composer of film musicals, is heard for the last time, bidding farewell in a cinematic mystique and touching ideally the eternal (1924-2024). SHORT FILM Director: Aristarchos Papadaniel
Make Love, Not Porn
Against the stereotypes of the “ideal” woman and the symbols of Pornography, the women in the works of Greek comic artist Stavros Kioutsioukis preserve their personality: they are the girls next door who try and get their rights in Happiness and Love. SHORT FILM Director: Peter Looles
The Intention Invention
An idealistic inventor develops a technology capable of detecting the true intentions of anyone it targets. SHORT FILM Director: R.J. Sullivan
Open Wings
A little refugee finch bravely saves the life of the wounded wild pigeon leader and also manages to win his respect. SHORT FILM Directors: Taxiarchis Deligiannis, Vasilis Tsiouvaras
Cut The Tie
The story of a girl's relationship with her eating disorder, told through dance. A girl is looking at herself in her bedroom mirror. She seems troubled by her body image and grabs a measuring tape to measure her waist. When left dissatisfied by the results, she pulles aggressively onto the ends. By doing that, the girl and her tape get transported into an imaginary world in which the tape transforms into a colourful ribbon that comes to life in order to lure the girl into dancing with it. At first, they dance together in complete harmony but once the girl decides to let go of the ribbon and dance alone, the ribbon grabs her and starts to control her every move like a puppeteer. It then starts to manically wrap around the girl until it becomes a nook around her throat. The girl tries to break free but finally surrenders to the ribbon. At that moment, a hand, seemingly from the real world, appears and hands her a pair of scissors. Together they cut the tie. The girl wakes up in front of her mirror once more and realises what has happened. She, then, heads out to seek the help that she needs. SHORT FILM Director: Anna Oikonomou
Through The Grapevine
'Through the Grapevine' is a modern Greek tragedy set in a wine shop, which uses traditional ancient Greek form and stylistics. When Daphne moves in with her Greek family after her mother’s recent death, she finds herself the unspoken centre of a familial scheme to persuade her to stay. Structured in the style of classical Greek theatre, the play unfolds through episodes, stasima, and a stylised chorus who double as relatives and Fates. Mythic and psychological threads intertwine - 'the Judgment of Paris' recast in domestic terms, the ghost of Daphne’s mother lingers, and a sensual initiation that veers into projection and entrapment. As gossip swells, Daphne must choose whether to follow the script written for her, or author her own. A story of autonomy, inheritance and the quiet audacity of walking away. THEATRICAL PLAY Author: Phoebe Michaelides
Margarita
Margarita (Daisy), a solitary woman in her thirties, moves into an old apartment block in Kypseli, Athens. She works at a flower shop and spends her time arranging cards and blossoms, trying to build a quiet, ordered life. But soon, she becomes the object of unwanted attention from her downstairs neighbor, Lambis — a man with piercing eyes, strange habits, and a long history of erratic, potentially dangerous behavior. SHORT SCREENPLAY Writers: Iris Katsoula, Katerina Aggelitsa
Daisy
The Great Gatsby from Daisy’s point of view. FEATURE SCREENPLAY Writer: Tamra Davis
Second Life
Second Life is an intimate, lyrical story about a woman in her fifties who leaves behind a life where she disappeared — first as a child in a chaotic, neglectful home, then again in a long, quiet marriage. Prompted by the unexpected death of an old friend, she begins to reclaim her identity in small, radiant steps: reading poetry aloud, dancing in the dark, wearing red lipstick, saying yes. A late-in-life love story with herself, and then with someone new — not to be completed, but to be witnessed. SHORT SCREENPLAY Writer: Lisa Kane
Persephone
In Persephone, Helene, a quiet, observant woman, encounters the enigmatic Aphrodite during a visit to an exhibition. Their encounter unfolds in a series of haunting, visually rich settings—museums filled with ancient statues, dimly lit corridors, and surreal theatre-like spaces. The film moves fluidly between reality and illusion, touching on themes of female intimacy, artistic legacy, and the myth of Persephone as a metaphor for personal awakening and transformation. As Helene is drawn deeper into Aphrodite’s presence, she begins to see herself reflected in the silent marble figures and theatrical tableaux that surround them. Is this a love story, a dream, or a ritual of passage? The answer remains as elusive as the gaze of a statue. SHORT SCREENPLAY Writer: Dimitris Fotiadis
Echo of Guilt
Determined to find a missing girl, a private detective is blindsided by the reality of the world and his own naivete. SHORT SCREENPLAY Writer: Timothy Dominguez
