Imanol Rayo’s “Dog Days,” a coming-of-age story set one sizzling summer in the Spanish countryside, won the top prize at the Thessaloniki Film Festival’s Crossroads Co-Production Forum, which wrapped with an award ceremony Wednesday night.
The Basque director’s fourth feature took home the Two Thirty-Five Co-Production Award, offering full post-production image and sound to a film that’s currently in development. Producer Iker Ganuza of Spanish production outfit Lamia was on hand to accept the prize from the jury, which praised the film as “a story about both emerging and buried passions, approached with a very personal touch of sensibility.”
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Speaking to Variety ahead of the Thessaloniki industry event, Rayo described his “sensual summer story” as “a reflection on the way in which the intervention of the human being or ‘climate change’ modifies the landscapes, habits and lives of ordinary people.” The director’s debut feature, “Two Brothers,” won the Zinemira Award at San Sebastian in 2011, and his 2020 follow-up, “Death Knell,” premiered in the festival’s New Directors strand.
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The Onassis Film Award, a €10,000 ($10,000) prize introduced by Onassis Culture last year in support of Greek cinema, went to “Achinos,” a coming-of-age drama from writer-director Iris Baglanea about two young sisters who become sea urchins and turn death into a game to protect themselves from the harsh reality of life. Pic is produced by Ioanna Bolomyti for Atalante Productions.
Wissam Charaf, whose sophomore feature “Dirty Difficult Dangerous” opened the Venice Days section at this year’s Venice Film Festival, won the French CNC (Centre National du Cinéma et de l’Image Animée) Development Award of €8,000 ($8,000) for script development for his feature film “Holiday.” The Beirut-set story about a family fleeing unrest is produced by Charlotte Vincent and Katia Khazak of France’s Aurora Films, and co-produced by Marco Valeiro Fusco of Italian outfit Intramovies and Pierre Sarraf of Lebanon’s Né à Beyrouth Films.
The Arte Kino International Prize of €6,000 ($6,000) went to “Five Murders Without a Cause,” from writer-director Kostas Gerampinis and producer Vasilis Chrysanthopoulos, of PLAYS2PLACE Productions. A pulled-from-the-headlines crime drama about a kind shepherd who murders five hunters in cold blood, the film also won the Finos Film award in the amount of €3,000 ($3,000) for a standout Greek project.
The Producers’ Network award offering free accreditation to the Cannes Film Festival in 2023 went to Marinos Charalambous, of Cyprus-based Boycott Films, for “The First Cypriot Astronaut,” a film from Stavros Pamballis about an ailing professor’s chance at fulfilling a crazy childhood dream. Pic is co-produced by Joyce Pierpoline (Pierpoline Films) and Bernhard Pucher (Iron Box Films).
The Mediterranean Film Institute’s Script2Film Workshops Scholarship for script development went to the Ukrainian project “Vater,” from director Anna Morozova, who co-wrote the script with Anna Chernivtsi. Pic is produced by Kyrylo Nechmonia for Mir&Co Production.
“Rien ne va plus,” directed by Daniel Bolda and produced by Nicholas Alavanos (Filmiki Productions), won the award from Initiative Film to provide consulting services for its development strategy to a Greek project.
The Thessaloniki EAVE Marketing Workshop Scholarship selected Andraž Jerič, of Slovenia’s Temporama, to participate in its 2023 workshop. The producer was in Thessaloniki with the road movie “Lost Years,” from writer-director Aron Horvath.
The Crossroads Co-Production Forum jury was comprised of Alessandro Amato, producer and CEO of Italian production house despàrte; marketing and distribution consultant and Endorphin Film Sales co-founder Christina Pelekani; and Myrian Sassine, artistic director of the Beirut Cinema Platform and producer at Abbout Productions. The jury also gave a special mention to “Y,” from writer-director duo Alexandru Baciu and Maria Popistașu and producer Anamaria Antoci of Tangaj Production.
The top prize in the Agora’s Works in Progress section went to “The Summer With Carmen,” a queer buddy comedy directed by Zacharias Mavroeidis and produced by Ioanna Bolomyti for Atalante Productions. The film took home the Authorwave Post-Production Award offering image services in post.
The MuSou Music and Sound Award for sound and music services went to “I’m Here, I’m Fine,” directed by Emine Emel Balci and produced by Dilek Aydin, Derya Turkmen and Jens Meurer for Heimatlos Films and Egoli and Tossell Pictures.
Lebanese fantasy drama “The Sea and Its Waves,” from directors Liana Kassir and Renaud Pachot and producer Mathieu Mullier-Griffiths (Kafard Films), won the 119 Marvila Studios award for sound mixing services. The film also took home the Yafka VFX Award for visual effects.
The ASTERISK* Marketing Award, offering services in key artwork, press kit content and social media, went to “Observing,” from director Janez Burger and producers Miha Cernec, Jozko Rutar, Nina Robnik, Robert Jazadziski, Ιgor Princic and Boris T.Matic for Staragara Production, Kaval Film, Transmedia Production and Propeler Film.
The ERT Agora Works in Progress Award, with a cash prize of €2,000 ($2,000) for a Greek project, went to Alexandros Voulgaris’ “Polydroso,” a family drama produced by Nicholas Alavanos and Christina Stavropoulou for Filmiki Productions.
The Works in Progress jury consisted of Agathe Corbin, acquisition manager at Urban Sales; Karlovy Vary Film Festival programmer Lenka Tyrpáková; and Konstantinos Vassilaros, of Athens-based production company StudioBauhaus.
The Thessaloniki Film Festival runs Nov. 3 – 13.
