The countdown for the 30th International Film Festival of Athens Nychtes Premieres has begun with a rhythm that creates high expectations. The Festival kicks off on October 2 with the Cannes Golden Palm winner, “Anora” by Sean Baker, and closes on October 14 with “The Neighbor’s Room” by Pedro Almodóvar, the celebratory Golden Lion of this year’s Venice Film Festival.
Celebrating an iconic anniversary in the cultural events of the city, the Nychtes Premieres bring to the big screen, as they have established over a 30-year journey, films in 3 competitive sections, major Oscar contenders of the season, as well as significant tributes that highlight both the high art of cinema and its role as an intervening medium in the sociopolitical events of each era.
Among the best films of the year that we look forward to watching, we make room for:
– the screening of the Cannes award-winning “Seed of the Sacred Fig” by the persecuted Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, who escaped his country last May and walked all the way to Germany
– a complete retrospective of the filmography of Japanese Akira Kurosawa, a leading creator of world cinema
– the urgent and timely tribute to British cinema of the ’80s entitled “This is England“
– the special screening of “Trainspotting” which connects to the origins of the Nychtes Premieres and winks at the notorious first screening of the film in 1995 at Apollon, in the second year of the festival
– the (also special) screening of “Megalopolis” by Francis Ford Coppola as presented at the Cannes Film Festival
– the new cinematic creation of the great Jacques Audiard “Emilia Perez“, in which “a lawyer is enlisted by a notorious Mexican cartel baron to secretly organize his gender transition and then help him withdraw from the underworld.” The entire cast was awarded the Best Actress award at Cannes
– “Conclave” by Edward Berger featuring Ralph Fiennes, who is a favorite for the Best Actor Oscar
“Conclave”
– the cinematic experience of two Cycladic Screenings on Thursday, October 3 and Saturday, October 5, as part of the exhibition Cindy Sherman at Cycladic: Early Works, featuring two historic and radical films, “Naked Kiss” by Samuel Fuller and “Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls” by Russ Meyer. The two films were chosen by Cindy Sherman herself
– the surprise of this year’s anniversary festival: the Nychtes Premieres and the Athens Film Office of the City of Athens co-organize as part of the popular Short Greek Films Competitive Section, and for the first time in Greece, an exciting workshop on Intimacy Coordination with the internationally renowned Intimacy Coordinator, Elle McAlpine, who counts among her many top collaborations the “Poor Things” by Yorgos Lanthimos and the highly publicized TV series “Baby Reindeer”.
The workshop will take place on Friday, October 4, from 11 am to 5 pm, at the multi-space of the Society of “Friends of Music” at the Athens Concert Hall, with free entry and will be conducted entirely in English.
This year, the Nychtes Premieres will welcome the public from October 2 to 14 in the cinemas of DANAE (Room 1 & 2), ASTOR, ASTY, CINOBO OPERA (Room 1 & 2), ABANA, Auditorium of the FRENCH INSTITUTE OF GREECE, MUSEUM OF CYCLADIC ART, MEGARON ATHENS CONCERT HALL (ALEXANDRA TRIANTIS ROOM), ONASSIS FOUNDATION STAGE, and PALLAS.