Kedzierzawska, Lechki win awards at Thessaloniki Film Festival

Poland’s film director Dorota Kedzierzawska was granted the honorary Golden Alexander award for lifetime achievements at the 51st Thessaloniki International Film Festival that ended on Sunday.
Marek Lechki won the Best Screenplay Award for “Erratum”, the film he also directed and produced.
On show during the festival were Kedzierzawska’s films “I am”, “Devils, Devils” and “Time to Die”. The films illustrate the Polish director’s original, outstanding style and her compassion for the people she portrays and profound respect she has for their choices, festival organizers wrote.
The Thessaloniki International Film Festival is a top film festival of South Eastern Europe. Founded in 1960 as the Week of Greek Cinema, it became international in 1992.
(Polish Press Agency) 

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2010 Thessaloniki Film Festival

The 2010 Thessaloniki Film Festival came to an end, with the International Jury bestowing this year’s awards at the Olympion Theatre on Saturday.  The film Periferic/Outbound by Romanian director Bogdan George Apetri was the big winner, receiving the Golden Alexander (Best Feature Film), the best actress award for Ana Ularu’s performance and the Greek Film Critics Association Award. Athena Rachel Tsangaris’s Attenberg got the Silver Alexander (Special Jury) award. The Bronze Alexander, given for the first time this year, went to Jean Gentil by Laura Amelia Guzman and Israel Gardenias.  Τhe Best Director Award was received by another Romanian director, Marian Crisan for his film Morgen, which was also chosen as best film by the International Federation of Film Critics Jury (FIPRESCI). In the Greek section, the FIPRESCI award went to Apnea by Aris Balafoukas.
(GREEK NEWS AGENDA)

Russia honours Polish director Andrzej Wajda

Polish film director Andrzej Wajda has been awarded an Order of Friendship by Russian president Dmitri Medvedev, the Kremlin informed Tuesday.
The Order of Friendship is one of the highest Russian distinctions.
Kremlin spokesmen said Wajda was granted the Order for his contributions to Russian-Polish cultural ties.
Wajda, 84, one of the founders of the so-called “Polish film school” in the 1950s and 60s, won world fame with his epic works Man of Marble and Man of Iron, in which he criticized Stalinism. Wajda has received numerous international awards for his films, including a lifework Oscar in 2000.
Earlier this year Wajda’s film Katyn about 1940 mass executions of Poles in Katyn Forest, west Russia, evoked broad reactions in Russia. Wajda said at the time that he had been personally involved in the film as his father had been among  the Katyn victims.
(PAP, 11/8/2010)

Academy of Greek Filmmakers

(GREEK NEWS AGENDA) Costa Gavras, Michael Cacoyannis, Nikos Koundouros and Dinos Katsouridis are honorary members of the newly established Academy of Greek Filmmakers (December 2009).
The Academy – which includes members of the different professions related to filmmaking – will primarily assume the responsibility of bestowing awards for Greek productions.
The Greek version follows the example of other countries (U.S.A., Germany, Spain, etc.) where the Academy has established itself as an independent body with successful work in promoting local productions. Besides awards, the 108 founding members of the Academy of Greek Filmmakers will contribute to the international promotion of Greek cinema and filmmakers’ training.
Visit Greek Film Centre’ Digital Archive of Greek Cinema; Greek Film Centre: www.gfc.gr