Audience demand for Sirens boosts Greek Film Festival

13 September – 1 October 2006
Palace Norton St Cinema 99 Norton St, Leichhardt

The Greek Film Festival of Sydney has announced that there will be a fourth screening of Greek blockbuster Sirens in the Aegean due to the overwhelming demand for tickets from Sydney-siders.

The Festival, which opened to packed cinemas last Wednesday September 13, will now include the fourth and final screening of Sirens in the Aegean on October 3 at 8:50pm in two cinemas at Palace Cinemas Norton Street.

Audiences are urged to book their tickets in advance to avoid disappointment through MCA ticketing or Palace Norton Street Cinemas. Tickets are available now from Palace Norton Street Box office or through MCA ticketing both by phone on 1300 306 776 or online at www.mca-tix.com

THIS WEEK’S ESSENTIAL VIEWING GUIDE

CHARITON’S CHOIR



Dir. Grigoris Karantinakis
2005, Greece, 35mm, 115 minutes, In Greek with English subtitles

Cast: George Corraface, Stefanos Karadinakis, Maria Nafpliotou, Akyllas Karazissis, Christos Steryioglou, Alexandros Logothetis, Ilektra Nikolouza, Vassilis Kolovos, Yvonni Maltezou, Dimitris Piatas, Spyros Stavrinios.

Chariton Ulianov has one great love: Life! That overriding love affair however does not hamper him in his pursuit of the enjoyment of her simpler pleasures. His position as School Master in a small provincial town on the island of Corfu gives him the opportunity to disseminate his own unique philosophy, especially to the students that participate in his greatest passion: the choir. His tender and playful outlook on life is an inspiration to his students who find themselves facing all the challenges of adolescence in a Greece which is itself facing the challenges of life under dictatorship.

Screenings:
Fri 22 Sept 8.30pm
Sat 23 Sept 6.30pm
Sun 24 Sept 8.15pm

FACE CONTROL



Dir. Vangelis Seitanidis
2005, Greece, 35mm, 84 minutes, In Greek with English subtitles

Cast: Ioannis Papazissis, Anna-Maria Papaharalambous, Mihalis Iatropoulos, Eva Theotokatou, Emmanuela Alexiou, Alexia Kaltsiki, Nikos Katis, Eleni Tzortzi, Yorgos Mihalakis, Panos Kranidiotis

Savvas is a doorman in a fashionable Athens club, but after years of nightlife he is going through his “midlife crisis” at 30! On Christmas Eve, he meets Lia, the daughter of an infamous big businessman, whom Savvas sees as his “other half”. A confirmed atheist up tlil now, Savvas starts to interpret various coincidences as divine signs. When he decides that Lia’s father is to blame for her despair, God arms his hand with a 45mm gun.

Screenings:
Wed 20 Sept 8.30pm
Sat 30 Sept 6.30pm

YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A TRIP TO GREECE

By way of thanking you for your continued support we are delighted to be able to offer you a fantastic chance to win a return flight to beautiful Athens courtesy of our fantastic sponsors Gulf Air (Gulf Air flies daily to Athens). Tickets are only $5 each and only 1,000 were printed so your chance of winning is high.

You can purchase tickets from the Festival volunteers at the Festival info Desk in the cinema prior to any of the sessions during the Festival.

LOAFING AND CAMOUFLAGE



Dir. Nikos Perakis
1984, Greece, 35mm, 99 minutes, In Greek with English subtitles

Cast: Nikos Kalogeropoulos, Yiorgos Kimoulis, Takis Spyridakis, Fotis Polychronopoulos, Yannis Hatziyannis, Paris Tselios, Stavros Xenidis, Andreas Filippidis, Christos Valavanidis, Antonis Theodorakopoulos, Nikos Tsachiridis, Tania Kapsali, Ifigenia Makati, Rocky Taylor, Dimitris Poulikakos, Antonis Maniatis

A cult classic Greek movie by Nikos Perakis, which was recently followed with the sequel in 2005, Sirens in the Aegean.
During the military takeover by the junta in 1967, a group of neophyte soldiers are assigned to duty in the dictatorship-run television station, a prospect, which is totally new to them. Overcoming boredom, they begin to produce comical and subtly subversive programs in this satirical look at life under Fascism.

Screenings:
Thur 21 Sept 8.40pm
Fri 29 Sept 6.30pm

WOMAN IS A TOUGH PERSON



Dir. Andonis Kafetzopoulos 2005, Greece, 35mm, 100 minutes, In Greek without English subtitles

Cast: Faye Kokkinopoulou, Antonis Kafetzopoulos, Yota Festa, Mania Papadimitriou, Jenny Roussea, Eleni Apostolopoulou, Kostas Triandafyllopoulos, Fotis Thomaidis, Makis Papadimitriou.

Veteran actor Kafetzopoulos directs as well as stars in this energetic comedy. He plays Johnny Maniatis, a put-upon ad executive who is facing the worst day of his life. His biggest client is threatening to defect, his kleptomaniac daughter has run off with a Bulgarian gangster, his mother has disappeared, and his lady love is demanding that they conceive a child that very day. . .or else! Events snowball in a long day and night of criss-crossing paths.

Screenings:
Sat 23 Sept 4.15pm
Wed 27 Sept 6.30pm

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UNPLANNED/ Ektos Schediou



Dir. Menios Ditsas
2004, Greece, Digital Beta, 64 minutes, In Greek with English subtitles

Cast: Narrators: Eva Kotamanidou, Christos Tsangas

This documentary features the Gypsy community, their origins, their history and the daily problems they face in Greece. Their special social characteristics, their nomadic perception of life, childhood, work and education, their social mores and traditions, their musical skill, their weddings and celebrations. A special element of this film is the attempt to fuse the narration with the tales of the Gypsies and excerpts from Costis Palamas’ poem “The Twelve Words of the Gypsy”.

Screenings:
Sat 23 Sept 2.30pm
Tues 26 Sept 6.30pm

A BIG THANK YOU!

On behalf of the GOC Board and the Film Festival Committee we would like to extend a very warm thank you to all of our Festival sponsors, partners and volunteers for making the Opening Night of the 2006 Greek Film Festival such a successful and enjoyable experience for so many people.

For more information on the Greek Film Festival of Sydney including screening times, ticket prices and special events please log onto www.greekfilmfestival.com.au

We hope you’ll enjoy the selection and join us for another great Festival!