International Student Competition

43rd Drama International Short Film Festival (DISFF)

The International Student Competition is a brand new initiative and one of the most promising programs of the Drama International Film Festival. Film Schools from around the world and Greece will participate. It’s an ambitious step/project aiming to underline the outwardness of the DISFF and goes hand in hand with the outwardness characterizing Greek cinema over the last ten years.

The International Student Competition, as well as the upcoming establishment of the Film School in Drama, will form an educational background for Cinema. This will offer participants the opportunity to be exposed to one of the major ways in which the Film Industry functions today.

Besides, the new festival aims to be a forum for young promising filmmakers – the future of cinema, to show their work and hopefully it will give rise to new film trends. Last but not least, this new department will offer the DISFF a further enhance its status as asset in its fair claim for a place as one of the leading Short Film Festivals in Europe.

International Student Competition will take place along with the National, and the International Competitions of the 43rd Drama Short Film Festival from 20th to 26th September 2020.

700 applications for the International Student Competition

THE 22 SELECTED FILMS FOR THE STUDENT COMPETITION OF THE 43rd DRAMA INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

The applications for the newly-established International Student Competition of the 43^rd Drama International Film Festival reached 700, a number that reveals the dynamics of student film.

22 films from 16 countries were chosen– including 3 Greek films. Of the 22 competing directors, 12 are men, 9 are women, and 1 is gender non-conforming.

They are students from 21 cinema schools around the world, 12 of which are internationally renowned. The festival has secured 7 World premieres, 2 European, 4 Balkan, and 9 Greek.

According to the International Student Competition, Thanassis Noefotistos:

“This year’s program comprises films that inspired us, gave us a very relieving feeling of creative envy, and which we would love to see reach the festival’s audience”.

Among the 700 films we received for the International Student Competition, there were numerous interesting short films, many more than we could choose from. This made our job more difficult, on the one hand, but gave us great joy, on the other, to see commendable film from students who have something to say, and are trying to forge a distinct cinematic voice. We are reassured that as long as there are people like these students, who feel the need to tell their stories, cinema will prevail- even in the most adverse of circumstances.”

The 22 selected films:

Violetta by Fivos Imellos, Fiction, 15’, GREECE – New York College
Rosa Kairo by Jacques Simha, Fiction, 14’, GREECE – Kapodistrian University’s Cultural Society’s Cinema Section
The Jar by Kyriakos Rontsis, Fiction, 10’, GREECE/UK – Bournemouth Film School (AUB)
The Best Orchestra in the World by Henning Backhaus, Fiction, 14’, AUSTRIA – Film Academy Vienna (UMDK)
Sun Dog by Dorian Jespers, Fiction, 19’, BELGIUM – Royal Academy of Fine Arts / University College Ghent (KASK)
In the Eye of the Beholder by Vanja Victor Kabir Tognola and Jan-David Bolt, Documentary, 8’, SWITZERLAND – Zurich University of the Arts / Department of Performing Arts and Film (ZHdK)
22:47 Linie 34 by Michael Karrer, Fiction, 10’ SWITZERLAND – Zurich University of the Arts / Department of Performing Arts and Film (ZHdK)
Fire Report by Katarína Jonisová, Documentary, 15’, SLOVAKIA – Academy of Performing Arts / Film and Television Faculty (VSMU)
Fine by Maya Yadlin, Fiction, 9’, ISRAEL – Minshar School of Art
Illusion Bleue by Tea Tannoury, Fiction, 15’, LEBANON / PALESTINE – Notre Dame University – Louaize (NDU)
Last Day by Szu-Wei Chen, Fiction, 11’, USA – Columbia University
Patron Saint by Georden West, Experimental, 8’, USA – Emerson College
Ghazaal by Ragini Bhasin, Fiction, 15’, USA – Aotearoa Short Film Lab in New Zealand
A Mess at Apartment 14 by Radu Barbu, Fiction, 15’, ROMANIA – UNATC, I.L.CARAGIALE
Development by Nikola Vučinić, 21’, Fiction, MONTENEGRO – Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Cetinje
Under the Heavens by Gustavo Milan, Fiction, 17’, BRAZIL – New York University (NYU) /Tisch
Austral Fever by Thomas Woodroffe, Fiction, 21’, CHILE – University of Chile’s Institute of Communications and Image / Demre Universidad de Chile
The Insect Women by An Doyeoung, Fiction, 16’, REPUBLIC OF KOREA – Suwon University Film Department
My Fat Arse and I by Yelyzaveta Pysmak, Animation, 10’, POLAND – Polish National Film School Lodz (PWSF TViT)
Something by Kasia Babicz, Fiction, 14’, POLAND – Warsaw Film School
The Same Skin by Nina Hopf, Experimental, 5’, GERMANY- B.F.A., Bauhaus-University, Weimar
Senescence by Phoebe Morrison, Animation, 4’, UK – UCA University for the Creative Arts

Thanasis Neofotistos

Head Programmer of International Student Competition of the 43rd DISFF

Thanasis Neofotistos is a Film Director, Writer & Architect from Greece. Berlinale Talents alumnus. His short film, PATISION AVENUE (13’-2018), premiered at 75th Venice Film Festival, won 3 awards at 41st Clermont-Ferrand 2019 (Canal+, Jury, EFA) and is a 2019 Festival-Hit with more than 100 film festival selections. ROUTE-3, his latest film, world-premiered at 44th TIFF Toronto 2019 and then again in 42nd Clermont-Ferrand 2020. GREEK SCHOOL PRAYER (20’-2014) was his successful thesis (“Golden Dionysus” Best Greek short film of 37 th DISFF 2014 & over 50 IFF), and SPARKLING CANDLES (9’-2019) is his LGBTQI+ super cute queer short film that premiered at the legendary 43rd Frameline IFF. He is now in the financing stage of his debut feature film, which he envisions as his personal coming-of-age Greek tragedy; THE BOY WITH THE LIGHT- BLUE EYES and he is in development stage of his next feature film project, WILD BOARS.

Head Programmer’s Note:

“My participation in Drama International Film Festival as the Head Programmer of the newly-founded International Student Competition is a very personal challenge! Back, in 2014, with my thesis film GREEK SCHOOL PRAYER I won the “Golden Dionysus” award for best film in Drama Film Festival. This offered me a great beginning and gave me the strength to continue doing what I love most in this world; filmmaking. Therefore, I know very well how important it is for a student filmmaker to be given the chance to present his work in an important film festival. For me this is the best first step for someone to understand the way the film industry works nowadays. On the other hand, I envision for the program to be international, because, from my personal experience that I have gained through my next short films (PATISION AVENUE, ROUTE-3, etc), I understand the importance that the knowhow of film networking has. Especially in an extremely competitive but also very hospitable worldwide environment looking for new, meaningful artistic voices. These thoughts will be my guide, towards a modern, artistically competitive and educationally useful International Student Competition program. A program that will help the students to come in touch with the life after their film school, but at the same time will highlight their raw artistic view with the freshness that this can bring.”

Material Delivery

Requested Material in case of Selection

a) The deadline for the shipment of the selected screening copies is the 28th of August 2020.
b) A screening copy, subtitled in English, in one of the following accepted formats:
DCP, Apple ProRes 422, h264 or MPEG4.
c) A technical data sheet with all the necessary projection info.
d) Any film that will not meet this deadline will be excluded from the competition. Only high quality standard prints will be accepted.
e) The Festival will return all screening copies within thirty days after the end of the Festival, to the address specified by the director or producer at least 10 days before the expiry of the shipment deadline.
f) The Festival covers the return shipment, not including extra costs and tariffs to the shipping country.
g) The screening copies of the selected films should be sent digitally to the email: student@dramafilmfestival.gr
or via mail to:
• Athens Premises: Drama International Short Film Festival,
Em. Benaki 71, 10681, Athens, Greece, +30 210 3300309.
or
• Drama Premises: Drama International Short Film Festival,
Agias Varvaras 9, 66100 Drama, Greece, +30 25210 47575.

Awards

Prizes are awarded to promote young talent. International festival jury consists of at least 3 members will decide on the prizes to be awarded.

– GRAND PRIX STUDENT: “Almost Famous”
– SPECAIL JURY AWARD: “Rising Star”

The Jury may also award other honorary distinctions for specific artistic achievements.
Each prize is awarded to a single film and cannot be awarded ex aequo.

Other Terms

a) The Artistic Director of DISFF reserves the right to compile the Festival’s program and implement changes wherever necessary.
b) The submitter is responsible for clearing rights and permissions concerning each submission. The festival holds no liability.
c) The film screener remains with the Festival’s Film Market.
d) The Festival reserves the right to digitize the submitted films for the needs of the Film Market and its Archive.
e) Film excerpts that might be broadcast on television or the internet should not exceed duration of 3 minutes or 10% of the total running time of the film.
f) The Festival reserves the right to publish film information, including the contact info of the director and the producer.
g) Transportation costs for preview material and prints submitted to the competition program shall be covered by the applicant. The Festival will undertake the costs of returning and securing the films as long as they are in the possession of the Festival.
h) In case of loss or damage under the Festival’s liability, the Festival undertakes the cost of making a new copy of that film.
i) Any dispute concerning the present regulations will be judged and settled by the President of the Festival.
j) Any legal disputes can only be settled by the local Legal Courts of Drama.
k) The languages of the festival are English and Greek.

Contact

DRAMA INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

*ATHENS PREMISES: 71 EMM. BENAKI ST., ATHENS 106 81, GREECE,
TEL: +30 210 3300309, FAX: +30 210 3302818.

*DRAMA PREMISES: 9 AGIAS VARVARAS ST., DRAMA 66100, GREECE,
TEL+30 25210 47575, FAX:+ 30 2521033526.

E-mail: student@dramafilmfestival.gr

Thanasis Neofotistos
Head programmer in the International Student Competition of the 43rd Drama International Short Film Festival. Film director. student@dramafilmfestival.gr

International Student Competition

700 applications for the International Student Competition

The 22 selected films:

Thanasis Neofotistos

Head Programmer of International Student Competition of the 43rd DISFF

Head Programmer’s Note:

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