The Greek Film Festival of Sydney kicked off on Thursday night, with positive feedback on the opening night film, Behind the Haystacks, reinforcing the festival’s standing as one of the major cultural assets of the community in NSW.
This was the view shared by many of the approximately 600 people that watched the film on the at the Palace Norton Street Cinemas, Leichhardt.
Four theatres of the cinema complex were at full capacity with cinephiles, mostly Greek-Australians but also members from the community at large.
The organisers were vividly satisfied with their decision to commence the 28th Greek Film Festival with the powerful picture written and directed by Asimina Proedrou, which has been selected as Greece’s nomination for the 2024 Oscars in the Best International Feature Film category.
Nia Karteris, the chair of the Greek Festival of Sydney and vice-president of the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW (GOC NSW), spoke enthusiastically on the wonderful turnout to the event which was rewarding as one of the organisers.
“I think it is important that people do embrace the film festival, come back to the cinemas to see films on the big screen, interact with people, instead of being locked up at home…nothing beats enjoying a film on the big screen,” Ms Karteris told Neos Kosmos.
She also gave a simple but direct message for everyone to do themselves a favour and watch a Greek film from this year’s program.
Harry Danalis, the GOC NSW president, stressed the importance of the film festival as a way of exposing people to a different kind of cinema they would otherwise not be able to experience.
“This showcases some of the best that there is in film from Greece and it gives an opportunity to people, who otherwise would not watch such films, to be able to see them,” Mr Danalis told Neos Kosmos.
The GOC NSW president also emphasised the festival’s ability to engage a whole different side of NSW’s Hellenic community, who do not regularly attend their other events.
“This is one of those events that draws people of Greek background from all over the Sydney metropolitan area. I think it is important for our children as well, that they are able to see and have this connection with Greece through cinema,” he said.
Ioannis Mallikourtis, the consul general of Greece in Sydney, expressed the significance of the film festival in showcasing modern pictures from the homeland, which act as “a reflection of Greek society”.
“It is extremely important because sometimes we have a distorted view of Greece when we are very far from there geographically and have potentially not visited for two decades or possibly more.
“It is important to promote contemporary Greek culture and discover how Greek society has evolved over the decades compared to the times that many of our grandparents came here,” Mr Mallikourtis said to Neos Kosmos.
