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Well-established film industry professionals shared valuable practical advice and guidelines with young producers and film directors in Agora/Industry Training Day, which took place in collaboration with CED Media Greece, on Tuesday November 7, 2017, at Warehouse C, as part of the 58th Thessaloniki International Film Festival.

At the first part of the action entitled “how to introduce yourself and your project”, Vicky Miha (Heretic Asterisk Film and Media Consulting) and Satu Elo, programme manager of the network EAVE (European Audiovisual Entrepreneurs) shared their experiences.

What kind of impression do I have to make?
Be professional, avoid unnecessary repetitions and try to showcase your project’s comparative advantages.
It goes without saying that you have to be perfectly fluent in English, both spoken and written.
Implement SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) as a strategic planning tool, in order to detect the strengths and weaknesses of your approach. As to the latter, do not hesitate to mention them explicitly.

How can I make good impression at my project presentation?
- Avoid vagueness and generality, e.g. with phrases such as “took part in many festivals”. If you refer to previous films by the same film director which are not distributed abroad, present them with a legitimate English title. Finally, if a distinguished personality took part in the project you are presenting, be sure to mention them.

What my approach should be regarding the film budget and funding?
Create a realistic budget plan and define with accuracy all amounts of money and contingency fees included / expected.
Seek information about previous projects that were funded by the particular program (e.g. if other projects from Greece have been funded recently, the possibilities automatically decrease).

At the second part of Training Day, entitled "bridging the gender gap in European film industry”, Alessia Sonaglioni (EWA - European Women’s Audiovisual Network Head), cited statistics on gender inequalities in European film industry.

EWA network produced a two-year study across seven European countries (Austria, Croatia, Italy, France, Germany, United Kingdom, and Sweden). The most encouraging results are observed in the field of academic education, while proportions are discouraging in women working in the film industry and the funding to female directors and producers.

EWA network actions and initiatives
EWA network has been engaged to a series of actions and initiatives, with the aim of making the problem clear and known to all participants in the film industry, regardless of gender:
The creation of a Scriptwriter Residency, where female scriptwriters are offered guidance on scriptwriting.
The “EWA Mentoring Programme for Female Producers” offers a one-on-one 12-month close cooperation and interaction.
A series of awards given to female producers (Mentoring Emerging Women Producers), for works in progress, as part of various European festivals such as Dok Leipzig, WEMW Trieste, FEST’s Fest Forward section.

In the third part of Training Day, entitled “online distribution, Netflix and other cases”, it was the turn of Guillaume de Seille and Weerada Suchariktul, representatives of production company Arizona Films and the video on demand platform Filmdoo respectively.

What do I have to know about distribution today?
In present conditions, it is extremely difficult for a non-English speaking film to find distributors abroad. The potential buyer must spend a lot of money, which they will not get back even if the film sells 10,000 or 20,000 tickets. The film buyers are now counting on the royalties for television airings or the DVD release. In both cases, though, numbers are falling, especially in DVD case. The new tendency are video-on-demand platforms, where either you pay a fee for each film you choose to watch or you pay per month to have full access to the platform’s list of movies.

What do I need to pay attention to when making a decision on my film’s distribution?
You must always be fully aware of all time and legal limitations each country imposes to film distribution.
Pay attention to issues such as the attentiveness and the special care your film will treated with by the given platform. This care is anything between quality accompanying material (e.g. editorials, interviews, high-class subtitles) and drawing a comprehensive marketing strategy. Define with accuracy your audience and try to preserve the loyalties for as long as possible.
Be sure to be present in the international festival network and always keep in mind that highest offers come during the following four festivals: Cannes, Berlin, Sundance and Toronto.

In the fourth and last part of Training Day the case study of the Roman film Charleston by Andrei Cretulescu was presented, after being awarded in Agora/Industry Works in Progress section of last year’s 57th TIFF and screened this year in “Balkan survey” section.

What are the obstacles involved and what are the problems solved in a co-production?
- In general, co-production resolves problems. One of the things decided in common was hiring a sales agent for the film’s promotion. If you won’t be able to find a co-producer for more than two years, though, maybe it is wiser to quit the idea, since you will have distanced yourself largely from the project. What we certainly understood is that meeting with companies representatives, taking part in festivals’ market sections, attending to workshops, seminars etc is never a bad idea. Even if nothing concrete occurs, thoughts and ideas you can hear in there may some time help. Of course, we should make clear that we would never accept something bigger and more participatory than a triple co-production. Ultimately, it is a sine qua non making sure that the director gets the final cut privilege for the film.

European films distribution and promotion matters were discussed between European producers during ACE Think Tank action, which took place on Wednesday November 8, 2017, at the Thessaloniki Museum of Photography, as part of the Agora/Industry section of the 58^th Thessaloniki International Film Festival.

The meeting was one out of a series of Think Tank discussions, organized by ACE Producers Network, a global network of experienced, independent producers from 45 countries, of which 28 are European. Among the network’s principal aims is to provide encouragement and support to international co-productions. In this context, Think Tank discussions (the previous took place in the Netherlands Film Festival, Utrecht, and the next, after Thessaloniki, will be at the International Film Festival Rotterdam) are about film co-production, funding, regulation and policy.

The Thessaloniki discussion was organized by ACE director, Jacobine Van der Vloed (Netherlands) and curated by the producer Eve Gabereau (United Kingdom). The producers Gabrielle Dumon (France), Juliette Grandmont (France), Raimond Goebel (Germany),  Erik Hemmendorff (Sweden), Jirí Konecný (Czech Republic) and Yorgos Tsourgiannis (Greece) participated as well.

In the course of discussion practical, technical, economic, cultural and aesthetic issues related to the European films distribution and promotion networks in the current digital environment were covered.

The conclusions of Think Tank discussions will be collected and presented to ACE producers and global film industry professionals through the prism of need to better promote the European films inside and outside Europe.

Celebrated Greek director Stavros Tsiolis presented his latest film Women who Passed my Way that had its premiere in the 58^th Thessaloniki International Film Festival on Saturday November 11, 2017.

Just before the beginning of the screening, a surprise video made by TIFF’s crew was screened. Its title was “Traveling with Tsiolis”, and it was a stitching of sequences from the director’s previous films, where the main characters wander around the Greek countryside, in constant move. After the screening of Women who Passed my Way, a discussion with Stavros Tsiolis, actors Errikos Litsis, Konstantinos Tzoumas and Takis Chrysikakos, as well as the film’s producer Christos Konstantakopoulos (Faliro House Productions) took place.

Making a brief introduction, TIFF’s director Orestis Andreadakis compared Stavros Tsiolis to a star which makes our lives more beautiful and appears and disappears on a regular basis. “Sixty-one years back a star appeared in Greek cinema. Which, after a while, chose to disappear. Until it came back to speak about people’s humble dreams and how they struggle to make them come true. This star almost disappeared again, but luckily it is still with us”, he said. Consequently, Stavros Tsiolis, after the audience’s warm and prolonged applaud, thanked everyone who contributed in the film and said he would meet the audience after screening for the discussion. “If you liked the film we will discuss it, if not, it’s OK, we’ll leave the room and save Orestis Andreadakis some time”, said the Greek director in his familiar humorous tone.

After the screening, and after being cheered for a second time, Stavros Tsiolis thanked all actors who took part in the film, Faliro House Productions and Christos Konstantakopoulos personally, while he specially mentioned the producer, Rania Psimenou, saying that she did not say no once to him, and she was always willing to take the hard way in every issue that would occur. “Our film, as you saw, is a short feature, its duration is just 84 minutes, we had more stories to tell, but we’ll put them in the next one”, added Stavros Tsiolis.

Asked whether Women who Passed my Way is the final part of an informal “female” trilogy in his filmography, Tsiolis said that in his two previous films (Please, Women, Don’t Cry and Let the Women Wait) women are somehow absent and stay in the background. On the contrary, this time they come in the foreground. “My friend and collaborator Vassos Georgas said that this particular film is a road movie unfolding not in the streets, but on women. This is how we ended up in the motto “a still road movie” which is written in the film’s poster”, Stavros Tsiolis added.

Consequently, asked about the fact that sequences of his previous films appear in Women who Passed my Way, he said that this particular choice was encouraged by the film’s editor (and Yorgos Lanthimos’ cooperator) Yorgos Mavropsaridis. “He once mentioned that the small duration of the film could be a problem, so we added some sequences from previous films, which I love very much, in certain moments of the film where they could fit harmonically. I promise you that my next film, which I estimate will be completed in two years, will be longer, about two hours long”, he added.

Consequently, the film’s protagonists, Errikos Litsis, Konstantinos Tzoumas and Takis Chrysikakos, shared with the audience the experience of working with Stavros Tsiolis. “It was a great joy for me to accept Stavros Tsiolis’ invitation, whom I respect very deeply, to play a leading role in his new film. An additional joy was the presence of Konstantinos Tzoumas and Takis Chrysikakos, who were my idols when I was making my first steps in cinema, which as you know happened in quite ripe age”, said Errikos Litsis. Then came Konstantinos Tzoumas’ turn to speak; as he said, he knows Stavros Tsiolis for many years, and he has been a steady admirer of his work as a film director. “Both making a film with Stavros and simply associating with him are a real adventure. What I respect in his approach as a film director is the lack of manner. Even his wonderful screenplays are virtually in jeopardy in the time of shooting, since he very often asks the actors to forget everything they have memorized. Besides Stavros, I too had not participated in a film for a long time, and this project convinced me both because it was lean and barely time-consuming and because it had a witty freshness”, Konstantinos Tzoumas said.

Consequently, Takis Chrysikakos, speaking about his character in the film, noted that he found extremely interesting the fact that this particular hero acts out of something in between cruel interest and pure human interest, counting both on humor and emotion that he inspires. In his turn, Stavros Tsiolis talked about the procedure of finding money to make the film, as well as Faliro House Productions’ involment to the project. “We had started a crowdfunding campaign, but in spite young people’s mass participation with 5 or 10 euros each, we only managed to collect 8,000 euros out of the 60,000 of the initial target. Until one day, my partner Vassos Georgas encouraged me to call Christos Konstantakopoulos. At first I couldn’t reach him on the phone, and when I managed to talk to him, he willingly accepted to participate in the project, saying that he was moved. You should see how I was moved”, said Stavros Tsiolis. In his turn, Christos Konstantakopoulos only said that it is a great honor for him and his company to be a part of Stavros Tsiolis’ new film.

These are the Awards of the 58th Thessaloniki International Film Festival!

The unique allure of cinemascope, the wide image projection, to both viewers and those behind the cameras was the topic of the masterclass “2.39:1 - Greek Cinema Goes Cinemascope Again” which took place on Saturday November 11, 2017, at Pavlos Zannas venue, as part of the 58^th Thessaloniki International Film Festival.

The event was organized by the Greek Society of Cinematographers (GSC) in collaboration with TIFF, and was moderated by the cinematographer Argyris Theos, with the cinematographer Christos Karamanis accompanying him at the panel sharing his experience from making films in cinemascope.

As Mr Theos noted, the term “cinemascope” refers to the anamorphic wide image projection format. “It is the very rectangular frame. This means that for a screen with a height of 1 m the width must be 2.29 m. It is specially made to fill the field of vision”, he explained. Cinemascope was mainly used in the 50s in Hollywood by 20^th Century Fox. In Greece, few films were shot like that during that period since, as Mr Theos said, “cinemascope was more expensive and Greek cinema was always poor”.

As Mr Karamanis added, widescreen format began with the aim to attract people away of TV and back at the theatres, since it fills the whole field of vision and gives the viewer the impression of “diving into screen”. For this reason, even today it is considered “more cinematic”, he said. Especially in close-ups, Mr Theos added, “Cinemascope allows for the surroundings to fit in the frame, adding depth of field”.

The two speakers mentioned the visual interest of cinemascope films, since the anamorphic lenses used in widescreen often make frames look like paintings. At the same time, these lenses have particularities and many defects, which nevertheless give a special quality to the films shot this way. “Sometimes visual errors occur, e.g. field curvature, elements which at times excite the directors of photography”, Mr Theos said. All these defects also become a motive for the cinematographers’ creativity and inventiveness.

During the event, footage from four films shot in cinemascope format by Christos Karamanis in the last few years were screened. They are Norway by Yiannis Veslemes (2014), Wednesday 04:45 by Alexis Alexiou (2015), Chevalier by Athina Rachel Tsangari (2015), and Suntan by Argyris Papadimitropoulos (2016). Footage from an older Greek film shot this way was also screened; it was the film The City That Never Sleeps by Andreas Tsilifonis (1984).

Amongst the attendants in the masterclass was TIFF board of directors’ president and cinematographer Yorgos Arvanitis, who noted that he also started his career with cinemascope, working with Finos Film. He also noted than in the last few years, for several reasons, economic, technical and artistic, film is making a comeback gaining ground against digital image. “In film’s case, the primary material remains intact for at least 100 years, which is not the case for hard disks”, he explained.

The masterclass was attended by film industry professionals, film school students and moviegoers.