30/07/2024 - A total of 15 filmmakers will be part of the new co-production forum of the festival, while 12 ideas will be pitched at the fifth edition of the Visio-Pitching Lab

Vicky Markolefa, one of the filmmakers presenting an idea at the Visio-Pitching Lab this year

A series of parallel activities will take place at the ninth Beyond Borders Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival from 25 August to 1 September. These include a new co-production forum, the latest edition of the Visio-Pitching Lab, the Beyond Storytelling workshop, and masterclasses.

The Beyond Borders Co-Production Forum, "Meeting Your Next Co-Producer in Kastellorizo," is a new initiative at the festival. Scheduled from 26-29 August, the forum unites 15 peer filmmakers—including creators, screenwriters, directors, producers, and executive producers, collectively known as the "Apostles." These participants will present feature-length documentary projects and engage in intensive two-hour sessions to foster co-productions, particularly from underrepresented countries. The forum places a special emphasis on documentaries from the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Asia Minor, extending to Iran. Discussions will cover international production trends, including the role of platforms and the impact of AI on filmmaking, aiming to inspire collaborations through these enriching encounters.

The Visio-Pitching Lab continues to grow in its fifth year, providing a platform for film professionals. This year's two-day lab, held remotely from 28-29 August, will feature 12 projects discussed with top industry professionals. Claudia Schreiner, head of the Masterschool at Documentary Campus in Berlin and Munich, will moderate the sessions. Each project will have a 15-minute slot for presentation, discussion, and feedback. The Jury Lab includes undergraduate and graduate students from film schools in Athens, Sydney, Belgrade, and Istanbul: Flore Vallery-Radot, Dorin Filimon, Nikos Kihem, and Melis Terlemez. This event aims to refine participants' ideas into comprehensive presentation packages, with Filmiki Productions offering a €1,500 mentoring prize to the best project, enhancing the opportunity for filmmakers to secure valuable funding and development advice.

In its second year, the Beyond Storytelling workshop invites students from a network of collaborating film schools to participate in a thematic exploration of Kastellorizo. The workshop, in collaboration with Tel Aviv University and Queen's University (Canada), is led by academic Uri Cohen, director Danae Elon, and award-winning filmmaker Liselle Mei. Participants will create a short documentary that delves into the narratives of the island's community, including the Kassie community and an artist whose work is carved into mountain rock. The workshop aims to challenge and expand storytelling perspectives, blending visual and textual elements to explore new documentary filmmaking notions. A work-in-progress from last year's workshop will also be presented, fostering discussions on research and artistic direction.

Masterclasses will feature prominent documentary filmmakers, including Mitzi Goldman, co-founder and CEO of Documentary Australia, discussing "Documentary in an Age of Misinformation" and the support of investigative documentaries; Elise Aicardi on "How to Co-produce with Public Sénat," focusing on co-productions with the French parliamentary channel; Bruce Clark, former International Security Editor of the Economist, presenting "Twice a Stranger," examining how historical events shape narratives and human experiences, with insights on the Treaty of Lausanne; Alan Gilsenan, an experienced Irish filmmaker, discussing "Working on the Edge: Documentary Production and Ireland," addressing the evolution of documentaries, filmmaking ethics, and opportunities for collaboration; and Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and anthropologist André Singer with "From Disappearing World to Meeting Zelensky: 50 Years in Documentary Production," sharing how anthropology led him to documentary production and insights from collaborations with renowned filmmakers like Jean Rouch, D.A. Pennebaker, Robert Drew, Mike Grigsby, Fred Wiseman, and Werner Herzog.

The Beyond Borders Festival continues to support and train new filmmakers through its network of international film schools. This year, Australia is the honoured country, with the Australian Film Television and Radio School joining the network. The collaboration with these schools includes participation in the μicro-competition stage, where selected films will be showcased on Phoenix TV, one of Europe's largest documentary networks. Additionally, they will engage in the Pitching Lab and its committee, the international student team aimed at learning production stages, and various festival programming activities.

Here are the selected ideas for the 2024 Visio-Pitching Lab:

Apollo on Earth - Radek Ševčík (Slovakia)
Big in Gazi Baba - Pauline Blanchet (North Macedonia)
Condemned to Dream: A Palestinian Theatre in Resistance - Muallem Ashtar (Palestine)
Dolphin Society - Vicky Markolefa (Greece)
Everything We Need Is Above the Earth - Elena Kollatou, Leonidas Toumpanos (Greece)
Let Them Hug - Jemma Potgieter (Australia)
Menes-Take 5 - Rola Shamas (UAE)
The Rabbi’s Wife - Charlotte Peters (Canada)
Reminiscing Kanat - Can Ture (Turkey)
Who Killed Zackie Oh? - Sophia Farantatou (Greece)
The Winged - Ines Perot (Greece)
Yaya - Aspasia Kazeli (Greece)