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A special event dedicated to the magic world of books took place in a particularly friendly and warm atmosphere on Saturday, March 10, 2018 in Warehouse C, within the framework of the 20^th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival.

 On the occasion of Frederick Wiseman’s latest film Ex Libris: Τhe New York Public Library screening in this year’s event, the festival audience had the opportunity to exchange their favorite books and participate in a conversation with Ioannis Trohopoulos, Head of the Athens 2018 World Book Capital organization, under the umbrella of the Municipality of Athens and UNESCO’s distinction.

Ioannis Trohopoulos shared with the audience some of his thoughts after viewing the documentary Ex Libris: Τhe New York Public Library, a film that presents every corner of this building, revealing a welcoming, open space for everyone, a venue of cultural exchange and education. Mr. Trohopoulos stressed: "I have some thoughts, feelings and words that were born from the very first time I watched this film. Repose and relaxation are two of them... Also, an idea: let's stay with these feelings without having envy or fear that we will never reach up to the standards of the New York Library. I also took notes of some words that I heard in the documentary or came to my mind as I watched it, words that describe a library today: bookstore, information hub, cultural center, shelter. And something oxymoron, in my personal view: in the documentary we saw some rich private donors who financially aided the library, a public organization, driven by their desire for a noble and tranquil world. And this can give food for thought about how culture is born”.

Mr. Trohopoulos also added: "My wish is to live with as less vanity as possible and certainty of self-conceit. We have to take small steps forward, that’s what we need to do, like for example this book exchange that is organized here today. And if I may, I will refer to my own experience as a director of the Veria Central Public Library where hundreds of people have been gathering, I will repeat that what matters are taking small steps without certainties and self-conceit”.

The unexpected, controversial cinema of Véréna Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, guests to the 20th anniversary edition of the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, was at the heart of the event “A Look into the Bizarre: A Discussion with Véréna Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor” that took place on Friday 9 March 2018 in the Thessaloniki Center of Contemporary Art. The event was moderated by the film director Athena Rachel Tsangari.

Celebrating its 20^th anniversary, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival looks back at its first edition in 1999, seeking the filmmakers and heroes of two documentaries screened at the 1^st TDF, to find out what they did in the two decades that followed. In the context of this anniversary initiative, Nikos Grammatikos’ Nightflowers (1998) was screened on Friday March 9 2018 at Pavlos Zannas theatre, as part of the 20^th TDF, in the presence of the film director and protagonist, Manolis Diamantidis.

Before the beginning of the screening, the director of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival Orestis Andreadakis warmly welcomed the two guests, noting: "Twenty years ago, when the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival began, a very sweet film by Nikos Grammatikos titled Nightflowers was presented. The protagonist was a 12-year-old boy, Manolis Diamantidis. It is a great pleasure to welcome them both today, after such a long time”.

Immediately after, Nikos Grammatikos, who was moved by the opportunity to meet some of his dear friends on the occasion of the screening, made special mention to Menelaos Tsaousis, mobility trainer and director of the Center for Education & Rehabilitation for the Blind (CERB), without the help of whom the documentary wouldn’t have been shot. Subsequently, the film’s protagonist Manolis Diamantidis thanked the audience for attending the event.

After the film’s screening, a discussion with the audience took place. Nikos Grammatikos spoke about how the original idea behind the documentary was born, underlining: "We have to go a long way back in November 1996, when I left Thessaloniki happy and satisfied as my film Truants/ Apontes had been awarded in the Thessaloniki IFF event that year. A few days later, I watched a news report on Seven-X television channel –which is no longer broadcasting- about the education of children who are born blind. It touched me deeply, I was literally shuddered by this; I must tell you that I'm terrified of the dark, it's probably something like the fear of a blind filmmaker like the one in Woody Allen's film Hollywood Ending, said the director.

The filmmaker went on to add that he contacted Menelaos Tsaousis and began filming the daily routine of the children of the CERB, resulting in having a total of 70 hours of material. "I then spoke with the actor Vangelis Mourikis, with whom we often work together, and we decided to turn this material into a film. Honestly, I do not know if we have recorded the best moments in the documentary, but what we had decided from the beginning was to focus on a particular person, and that was Manolis Diamantidis. I don’t think that Nightflowers is a film about blind children, but a film about how we overcome the difficulties and obstacles in life, obtaining strength from both our own resources as well as the help we get from the people around us. This is also the meaning behind the film’s last scene, in which Manolis climbs on the door fence of the CERB premises”, said the director.

On his part, the documentary’s protagonist Manolis Diamantidis, after saying that filming was a wonderful experience, despite having endured enough, was asked whether it is preferable for a blind child to join a school environment with children who don’t have vision problems or prefer a specialized school for children with vision problems. "I think that when you are part of an environment with people without such problems, you have to meet new people, face new situations, find ways to solve some new issues, which altogether will prove useful for you in the future. On the other hand, this is a very painful process, so it also depends on how each person handles the obstacles and difficulties they encounter, "he explained.

Nikos Grammatikos took the floor right after, stating that he refuses to deal with the children who are born blind as handicapped people. "Honestly, I think there is nothing these children can not cope with; one can even become the country’s Prime Minister. The difficulties faced by these children arise to a great extent from the obstacles posed by a society that has been made by people who see for people who see as well. As I have already said, this is essentially the subject of the film; the overcoming of difficulties and obstacles in life”, said the director.

Closing the conversation, Menelaos Tsaousis warmly thanked Nikos Grammatikos not only for making this documentary, but also for all the painstaking work he had done before finishing the film. "People need to know that Nikos Grammatikos first made sure he spent approximately two whole years with the children of CERB, in order to gain their trust and immerse into their world. This documentary travelled to many international festivals, was screened on the Greek television and enabled many people, especially children without visual impairments, to familiarize with the world of blind children and get to know better their potential and needs. Right now, we are trying to open up to the society, because I think we have to move from the stage of awareness to the stage of taking action. Our big goal at the moment is to increase the number of guide dogs and I hope you will soon see many of them in the streets of Thessaloniki”, he concluded.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival looks back at its first edition in 1999, seeking the makers and heroes of two films screened at the 1^st TDF, to find out what they did in the two decades that followed. In the context of this anniversary initiative, Fatima Jebli Ouazzani’s documentary In my Father’s House was screened on Thursday March 8 2018 at Pavlos Zannas theater, as part of the 20th TDF, in the presence of the film director.

The film In my Father’s House, which had premiered in the 1^st TDF, is about the position of women in Moroccan society seen through the film director’s personal history and her refusing to accept an oppressive marriage, as well as through the story of another woman, Naima, who chose a different path. The film touches upon subjects such as virginity in Islamic tradition, the husband and father dominance and inequality between women and men.    

In the discussion with the audience following the screening, the director talked about the experience of watching her film two decades after it was presented for the first time at the festival. She did not hide her frustration at seeing so few things having changed since, as to the role of women in Islamic tradition: “I was hoping that women’s role would change for the better after the Arab Spring, that some steps towards equality would be made. Not only such a thing did not happen, but things got worse in Egypt and Libya. The only Arab country where women and men are equal before the law is Tunisia. In all the other countries, men are women’s ‘patrons’. I understand that traditions are very difficult to change, they stick with girls since early ages. This becomes clear in the film. But the law can and needs to be changed. And I want to be alive when this happens. Besides, that’s the reason why I made this documentary. To help change things.”

The film director also spoke about the difficult relation with her father, which she deals with in the film, noting: “I chose to live my own life because I believe my body belongs to me. It belongs to me, not my husband, not my brother, not any master. But I missed my father. I couldn’t close that door. I had migraines, depression because of that. So I decided to face my demons and move on making the film. You could say that the film was the ‘excuse’ for me to approach my father. Of course, I was determined to make the documentary whether my father would, or would not agree to see me. In case he would not agree, I would show this too in the film”.

In an attempt such as this documentary, dealing with such an experiential, autobiographical material on a sensitive topic which is taboo for some communities, obstacles or difficulties are inevitable. “I wanted to make a film on the tradition of virginity, and of course I did not want to get married following this tradition. But all the stories of my family, either my mother’s or mine when I was a kid and started to figure out what virginity means, had happened in the past. So in order to recount those real facts I needed the actors and the dramatization I used in the film, to visualize the narrative. The story of the young Naima, who we see in the film choosing to follow the virginity tradition and getting married like this, is real and not dramatized. She is still married to her husband and they have two kids. The most difficult was finding a character like hers, who would give me the permission to film her story and marriage. It took me two years to find her”, the film director noted.

Another issue that deeply touches the filmmaker is immigration, since she moved to the Netherlands with her family when she was seven years old, and she lives there ever since. “I’m an immigrant, that’s why I have been able to change my life. I went from Morocco to the Netherlands and it only took a generation for things to change, for a Moroccan woman to be able to leave her home without being married and to make relevant documentaries”, the film director stressed. And added: “I believe EU does not treat Greece and Italy as it should, though these countries are dealing with the biggest immigration problem.  Poverty is what makes things explosive and worsens the situation. I can’t say I agree with this, but that’s the way things are. I believe you Greeks must fight, demand a change of things, first from your politicians. The film director concluded: “Coming from Amsterdam, I was hearing Greeks all around the plane. Many Greek families were going home. And I felt I was one of these people who left their country to go to the Netherlands, an immigrant among immigrants”.

The film has never been screened in any Islamic country, but the director hopes that this will change this summer. “In 1998, the film was awarded the National Prize in Casablanca and I found two distributors for its screening in Morocco. But my producer, who had the exclusive rights for distribution, did not want to proceed with this, because he was afraid the copy could be stolen. He had a similar experience in Russia and did not want to lose money. Perhaps this year, after 20 years, I will be able to go to Morocco in summer an organize a screening. I will do everything I can to make that happen”, the film director noted.

For the first time the Moving Docs conference takes place during the Doc Market of the 20^th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, from Thursday March 8 to Saturday March 10, 2018, at Warehouse C and “Takis Kanellopoulos” theatre, both located at the port of Thessaloniki. With 19 partners across Europe, Moving Docs enables a selection of the best European documentaries to cross borders and reach new audiences in over 20 territories.

Moving Docs workshop’s first day included three presentations. Cecilie Bolvinkel, EDN Network and Partnerships Manager for Moving Docs, welcomed the participants and afterwards Andrea Arvidsson and Maja Lindquist, Co-directors of Doc Lounge, a company based in Malme, Sweden, and specialized both in Scandinavian film distribution and the organization of parallel marketing events spoke, highlighting the following main points:

• The key idea is to expand the content available to the viewer-consumer (subjects diversification, guests enriching the main subject of the respective documentary, parallel artistic events).
• Developing partnerships is a crucial element to success (academic institutions, NGOs, citizen organizations, institutions with specific scope of action).
• Besides the marketing of the respective documentary, it is equally crucial to build an original brand name.
• An ideal way to sidestep spacing limitations is to organize screenings and events through live streaming, which gives access to areas with no cinema venues.
• Doc Lounge also provides services such as holding and organizing tailored events (small-scale conferences for companies, gaming events).
• Innovative ideas, such as event organizing in venues not directly linked with cinema and documentary can rapidly boost the positive impact (e.g. Doc Lounge organized screenings of the documentary MonaLisa Story in the six women’s prisons of Sweden).
• Organizing screenings for children under 18 may activate an untapped target group.

Consequently, Ben Kempas, the mastermind behind Film & Campaign, a company based in Edinburgh which specializes in organizing marketing campaigns, mainly for documentaries, stressed the following:

• The public can function not only as an ambassador of a documentary’s value, but as an organizer of screenings and events, through special platforms.
• Video on Demand can fulfill additional special purposes (training, collection of donations, event organizing).
• Another platform worth mentioning is the “pay it forward” scheme, where some viewers can watch a documentary whose screening is paid by others, and then be asked to do the same for new audience.
• An idea carrying many advantages is the ability to watch a documentary at home; this could become available to a multitude of viewers, through streaming at a common hour.
• A documentary’s impact crystallizes in five axes: recognition - change of mood and attitude - change of external behavior - adoption of new daily routines - building of “communities” for common action and thinking.
• Drawing a marketing schedule long before the documentary’s release can prove of key importance.

Subsequently, the workshop participants split into three working groups, each one focusing on a particular case study, the core subject being the documentaries Over the Limit, Golden Dawn Girls and Silvana respectively, all of which are screened in the 20^th TDF. The working group with Marta Prus’ documentary Over the Limit, focusing on the life of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics athlete Margarita Mamun, was moderated by Johanna Solecka, head of Facebook marketing for several international festivals, and ended up to the following conclusions: a) this particular documentary’s anticipated audience mainly consists of athletes, sports enthusiasts, parents (especially with children involved in sports) and psychologists, b) the institutions one could possibly seek a cooperation formula with, in order to promote the particular documentary, are schools, sporting equipment companies, makeup and women’s makeup companies, fitness centers and other organized sports venues, the various Olympic medalists associations, c) summing up, the additional actions which could assist with promoting the particular documentary are the direct involvement of the person shown, the reference to the film director’s personal story, since she was seriously involved with rhythmic gymnastics up until the age of 15, having guests coming from the particular field in the various marketing events, as well as a rich accompanying material in the form of videos and/or pictures. 

At the end of the brainstorming procedure, Amilie Leenahardt, Head of ARTE, said that this documentary will premiere on October 2018 in French and German TV, during the prime time zone, while in ARTE’s platform it will be released in four more language versions: English, Italian, Spanish, Polish. The discussion ended with the moderator, Mrs Solecka, stressing the importance of creating a main page on Facebook to reach a global audience, apart of individual pages in each country where the respective documentary will be released, while she explained that the promoting videos on Facebook should not come from YouTube, since in that case the Facebook algorithm would “eradicate” them.

The third and last presentation of the first day of Moving Docs Workshop was hosted by Ben Johnson, CEO at Gruvi, a technology media company that helps entertainment businesses reach and engage online audiences. Mr Johnson shared valuable insights that can help with digital film marketing, and spoke about the ability to reach and communicate with the audience, as well as the new marketing tools and practices. More information on this presentation can also be found here: http://www.filmfestival.gr/en/professionals-b2b-tdf/press/news-press-en/26536-20th-tdf-edn-docs-in-thessaloniki-masterclass-how-to-reach-and-build-an-audience