07/11/2025 - We take a look at some of the industry platform’s award-winning projects, which proved to have strong artistic visions and potential for cross-border collaboration

At the 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival, the Agora Crossroads Co-production Forum once again highlighted a diverse selection of projects from across Europe and beyond (see the news). The section, renowned for connecting filmmakers with producers, sales agents and distributors, offered insights into upcoming films with strong artistic visions and potential for cross-border collaboration.

This year’s jury – composed of Frank Hoeve, producer at BALDR Film; Uljana Kim, producer at Studio Uljana Kim; and Andreas Zoupanos Kritikos, producer and COO of Faliro House – granted three major awards to projects that stood out for their originality, thematic depth and cinematic ambition (see the news). Furthermore, among the independent prizes, the prestigious Onassis Film Award was handed out by Vassilis Panagiotakopoulos, head of Productions at the Onassis Foundation.

Below we take a look at some of the award-winning projects:

2|35 Post-production Award

The Leaves Hang Trembling – Stefan Djordjević (Serbia)
Producer: Dragana Jovović (Non-Aligned Films)
Blurring the line between fiction and lived memory, The Leaves Hang Trembling follows a devoted teacher who is unjustly dismissed shortly before her students’ graduation. The project paints a portrait of care, resistance and the transformative power of education as the pupils rise to defend her. Inspired by the diaries of the director’s late mother, Neca, the story unfolds as both a tribute to and an inquiry into the emotional labour of teaching, exploring the human connections that prevail over institutional injustice.

Djordjević, whose debut feature, Wind, Talk to Me [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Stefan Đorđević
film profile], premiered at IFFR and Sarajevo, continues to expand his cinematic language with this new work, once again blending the authenticity of documentary with the narrative pull of fiction. The project reconstructs true events using non-professional actors, real locations and the director’s own family history to create a deeply personal exploration of empathy and resilience. Currently in the early financing stages, the docu-drama is being produced by Non-Aligned Films, with Vanja Jambrović, of Restart, attached as a co-producer. With support from Film Center Serbia, the team is seeking additional co-producers, partners and a sales agent.

CNC Development Award

The Unmoving Hands – Víctor Diago (Spain)
Producer: Andrés Mellinas (Boogaloo)
Set in Barcelona’s El Raval district, The Unmoving Hands weaves a gothic fable around a strange rumour: that the city’s homeless men were once teenage boys. Centring on Hakim, a youth caught in a cycle of desire and decay, the story unfolds as a queer, fantastical reflection on love, immortality and the destructive pursuit of eternal youth. Combining the atmosphere of classic horror with the intimacy of a love story, the story transforms El Raval into a haunted, allegorical landscape where desire becomes both a curse and a lifeline.

Following his debut, Downriver a Tiger [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Locarno, IndieLisboa), Diago is among Spain’s new generation of bold visual storytellers, committed to expanding queer cinema’s thematic and aesthetic frontiers. The project’s script, co-written with Miguel Ángel Blanca, pushes beyond conventional LGBTQ+ narratives to explore how erotic longing and emotional connection coexist under capitalism’s obsession with youth and beauty. Produced by Boogaloo Films in co-production with Diacrònic, the project is currently seeking European co-producers and a sales agent.

ArteKino International Award/EAVE Thessaloniki Award – Marketing Workshop Scholarship

The Life and Times of Ion G. – Andreea Cristina Borțun (Romania)
Producer: Gabi Suciu (Atelier de Film)
In The Life and Times of Ion G., a former unhoused man returns to his birthplace in a Roma village, seeking the family who abandoned him. His journey intertwines questions of love, dignity and the social politics of heroism, while also addressing how public narratives shape personal worth. Moving between Romania and France, Borțun constructs a hybrid work of realism, black comedy and poetic introspection that probes how emotional deprivation shapes one’s ability to love, especially when society has predetermined who is “worthy” of care or redemption.

Borțun, known for her Cannes-selected short When Night Meets Dawn, brings her anthropological and process-driven approach to this second feature, blending fiction and real-life encounters. Produced by Atelier de Film, the project has already secured support from CNC Romania and Doli Media Studio. With locations spanning southern Romania, Bucharest and Nice, the team is seeking co-producers, sales agents and creative partners.

Onassis Film Award

The Tide Hears Them but They No Longer Have a Voice – Yiannis Veslemes (Greece)
Producer: Nicholas Alavanos (Filmiki Productions)
Blending Mediterranean noir and metaphysical mystery, The Tide Hears Them but They No Longer Have a Voice follows a notary who travels to Corfu in 1974 to settle a friend’s will – only to find a corpse identical to the man presumed dead. As reality fractures, the investigation becomes a meditation on identity, time and the longing for immortality. Evoking the spirit of Italian giallo and post-war noir, Veslemes transforms genre conventions into a playful yet profound reflection on how the fear of mortality drives human folly.

The director, known for Norway [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (Karlovy Vary) and She Loved Blossoms More [+see also:
film review
film profile] (Tribeca, Sitges), once again fuses arthouse storytelling with genre aesthetics. Staged by Filmiki Productions, the project has received backing from the Hellenic Film and Audiovisual Center, and is currently seeking international co-producers and financial partners.