28/06/2023 - From 20-27 August, a total of 42 films will be competing for prizes at the international documentary film festival focusing on historical and cross-cultural events

The eighth edition of the Beyond Borders - Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival, also simply known as Beyond Borders, is set to embark on a journey to the “edge of the Aegean” from 20-27 August. Throughout this week-long event, a diverse selection of documentaries will delve into historical events, influential figures, sociopolitical matters, the promotion of human rights and any other cross-border issues that resonate with contemporary film art.

This year, an unprecedented 835 films from 93 countries were submitted, and out of those, a selection of 42 documentaries have been chosen for the festival. The event will feature three distinct screening strands: the Main Competition section, showcasing 18 medium- and feature-length documentary films; the μicro Competition Section, which will present 24 short documentaries; and finally, the non-competitive screening sidebar, known as Panorama, which will offer daily special screenings.

The selection for the Main Competition includes: A Tale of Four Minorities (Israel) by David Deri, Audrey Napanangka (Australia) by Penelope McDonald, Dead Weight (Italy) by Francesco Del Grosso, Grief – Those Who Remain (Greece) by Myrto Patsalidou and Maria Louka, The Hidden Children of Colonization (France/Belgium) by Dominique Regueme, Her Tobacco (Greece) by Stathis Galazoulas and Elisavet Kavalaraki, Holy Dilemma [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Hungary) by Julianna Ugrin and Márton Vízkelety, Hours of Ours (Thailand) by Komtouch Napattaloong, Radji (Belgium/Norway/Sweden/Lithuania/Croatia) by Georg Götmark and John Erling Utsi, Roofless Dreams (Greece) by Sotiris Danezis, Scenes with My Father (Netherlands) by Biserka Šuran, The Soldier's Opinion (Israel) by Assaf Banitt, To Each Their Voice: Theo Angelopoulos & Nikos Panayotopoulos (Greece) by Antonis Kokkinos and Yannis Soldatos, Uncanny Me (Germany) by Katharina Pethke, Underdog (Netherlands) by Mariëtte Faber, We Will Not Fade Away [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Ukraine/Poland/France) by Alisa Kovalenko, What Remains on the Way (Germany/Brazil/Mexico) by Jakob Krese and Danilo Do Carmo, and When Spring Came to Bucha (Ukraine/Germany) by Mila Teshaieva and Marcus Lenz.

A five-member international jury will decide on the winners of the Main Competition. Chaired by Wolfgang Bergmann (external director of ARTE Germany), it also comprises filmmaker Eva Stefani, director Karin Jurschick, Stavros Papageorgiou (director of the AEI Cyprus Film Festival) and director-producer Jordan Paterson. Meanwhile, the μicro jury is headed up by Peter Arens (director of History and Science at ZDF), and features filmmaker Pelin Esmer, academic and producer Marcin Malatynski, academic Afroditi Kairaki and director Panos Dendramis.

Furthermore, as part of the festival's programme, a daily event called "Critics' Corner" will take place under the guidance of Klaus Eder, secretary general of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI). During these sessions, three FIPRESCI members will engage in discussions with industry professionals and the audience regarding the films that were screened the previous night in the festival's competition sections.

Beyond Borders maintains its ongoing collaboration with esteemed institutions that play a significant role in the advancement and dissemination of documentaries and culture on a global scale. Germany's largest state channel, ZDF, holds the position of media institution of honour, while the Munich Film School is the honorary academic institution. Additionally, the Cyprus Archaeological, Ethnographic and History Documentary Festival (AEI Cyprus Film Festival) will be acknowledged as festival of honour during this edition. Lastly, Canada has been designated as the country of honour.

The eighth Beyond Borders - Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival is organised by the Hellenic History Foundation (IDISME), in collaboration with the Paris-based association Ecrans des Mondes and in co-organisation with the South Aegean Region, and it will be held for another year under the patronage of HE the President of the Hellenic Republic Ms Katerina Sakellaropoulou.