Today, a new film festival is being introduced to Vancouver, BC.

The Vancouver Greek Film Festival is taking place in-person from June 16 to June 19 and is made possible by a partnership with The Hellenic Canadian Congress of BC and The Cinematheque. The aim of this festival is to offer an eclectic selection of contemporary and classic Greek films while celebrating film as art.

This inagural edition of the festival features films curated into four special categories: From the Archive, Celebrating Greek Auteurs and Artists, Contemporary Greek Cinema, and Greeks in Diaspora. You can view the festival’s schedule here, with a glance at the feature length and short films that will screen at the festival below:

FROM THE ARCHIVE

• Zorba the Greek (1964), dir. Michael Cacoyannis | Opening Film

• Oi Apachides Ton Athinon (The Apaches of Athens) (1930), dir. Dimitrios Gaziades | Canadian Premiere

CELEBRATING GREEK AUTEURS AND ARTISTS

Spotlight on Athina Rachel Tsangari

• Attenberg (2010)

• Chevalier (2015)

• The Capsule (2012)

Maria Callas

• Maria By Callas (2017), dir. Tom Volf, with an introduction by Canadian soprano Lambroula Pappas

CONTEMPORARY GREEK CINEMA

• Digger (2020), dir. Georgis Grigorakis | BC Premiere

• The Distance Between Us and The Sky (2019), dir. Vasilis Kekatos

GREEKS IN DIASPORA

• Greek to Me (2019), dir. Harry Killas | Closing Film + North American Premiere

• Screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director

To welcome this new film festival, I got fellow ForReel writer Todd Pengelly and friend and colleague Taylor Baker from Drink In The Movies together to talk about the festival and why you should make time to experience and support this effort to spotlight Greek cinema.

About the Hellenic Canadian Congress of BC

The Hellenic Canadian Congress of BC fosters education, communication, and cooperation between Hellenic Canadians and other ethnic groups, and promotes the development of just and equitable policies and legislation concerning all citizens. The Congress encourages and promotes the retention and development of Hellenism in British Columbia within the multicultural context of Canada.

About The Cinematheque

Founded in 1972, The Cinematheque is a film institute and media education centre devoted to understanding the art and history of Canadian and international cinema and the impact of moving images and screen-based media in our lives. Public activities include a year-round calendar of curated film exhibitions devoted to important classic and contemporary films and filmmakers; and an array of community outreach programs offering interactive learning opportunities in film appreciation, filmmaking, media literacy, and critical thinking.

Social media:

Facebook: @thecinematheque | Instagram: @thecinematheque | Twitter: @thecinematheque