06/11/2002 - 16 films in competition, and tributes to Bellocchio, Rafelson, Tarr and Stevanin as well as Greek filmmakers Vougaris and Hadzchristos

The Thessaloniki Film Festival will run for the 43rd time from 8 November to 17 November, and will introduce Greek audiences to the work of young, bold and radical directors from various parts of the world in a celebration of the diversity of film tradition.
16 films by young directors from Palestine, Slovenia, Thailand, Germany, France, Italy, Argentina, Korea and Mexico were selected for the official competition and a special panorama section will showcase the best of recent Greek productions.
This year’s event will pay tribute to the work of director Marco Bellocchio, whose tumultuous and often contradictory 40-year-long career has won him a place alongside the masters of Italian cinema. Thessaloniki also includes a tribute to American maverick, Bob Rafelson and is an opportunity for Greek audiences to familiarize themselves with the work of Hungarian visionary, Bela Tarr, and the lyrical films of French actor and director Jean-François Stevanin. Thessaloniki will pay tribute to two Greek cineastes, Pantelis Vougaris, renowned for the realism of his films, and Costas Hadzichristos, one of Hellenic cinema’s most popular creators of comedy.
New Horizons is a parallel programme offering a variety of aesthetically and dramatically challenging films. The programme also includes a sidebar event called e-magic 2002 where the latest technological innovations will be presented and their relevance to and impact on the audiovisual industry discussed. This festival is also an important meeting point and platform for interactive and multimedia products.

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