LAGFF 2019

13th Los Angeles Greek Film Festival
June 3-9 - UCLA - Egyptian Theatre - Hollywood

BRINGING GREEK FILM TO LOS ANGELES SINCE 2007

Monday, June 3 at 7:00 pm
Opening Night at UCLA, James Bridges Theater

THE RIGHT POCKET OF THE ROBE 

A lonely monk tries to manage the unbearable sadness and loneliness that suddenly and unexpectedly “return” when he loses his only companion. His dog. Extreme emotions will make him “converse” with his past, and due to this “humble”, for some, trigger, he will reposition his course and his life.

Born in Athens in 1958, Lapatas attended the School of Fine Arts and, at the same time, he attended History of Art, Theatre and Film seminars in Venice and in Bologna, Italy In 1980, he graduated from the Doxiadis School (Interior Design). In 1983, he graduated from the Directing department of The Hellenic Cinema and Television School Stavrakos.

* 2018 Thessaloniki TIFF – Youth Jury Awards, Best Feature Film Greece

Wednesday, June 5 at 7:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

MELTEM

July 2015. Elena, a young French woman of Greek origin returns to Lesbos with her friends Nassim and Sekou to inherit her mother’s house one year after her death. But the holiday takes a totally new course when Elena and her friends encounter Elyas, a Syrian migrant of their age.

Basile Doganis is a Greek-French director-screenwriter. After studying philosophy in Paris and Tokyo, he started making fiction films and documentaries. Meltem (2018) is his first feature film.

Thursday, June 6 at 6:15 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

PAUSE

In a desperate attempt to escape from the misery of a loveless marriage, Elpida finds refuge in a fantasy world of vindictive violence. Soon, reality and fantasy start to blur.

Tonia is a Cypriot filmmaker and producer who loves making films that deal with social and women’s issues. Member of the European Film Academy and the European Women’s Audiovisual Network, Berlinale Talents alumna, artistic director of Cyprus Film Days International Festival, served as vice president of the Directors Guild of Cyprus board.

* 2018 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
* 2018 Panorama of European Cinema – Best Film award by the Union of Film Critics of Greece
* 2019 Germany Emerging Filmmakers – Best Film Award
* 2018 Thessaloniki International Film Festival – FIPRESCI award for Best film and ERT award

Thursday, June 6 at 8:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

OLYMPIA

This revealing and unfiltered documentary follows the life and career of Academy Award-winning actress, Olympia Dukakis. This film deals with the struggles and pains surrounding identity and the roles. A deeply moving narrative explores not only Olympia’s rich and storied career  but also her struggle to find a sense of belonging between her American values and the values of her immigrant parents.

* 2019 Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
* 2019 Cleveland International Film Festival
* 2018 Doc New York City

Thursday, June 6 at 8:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

EPIPHANY

Epiphany follows the story of Luka desperate to connect with her negligent father in a Greek sponge diving town in Florida. While also struggling in her relationship to her pill-addicted uncle, Luka befriends an older man and slowly uncovers her family’s mysterious past.

Koula Sossiadis Kazista worked in New York film production on many projects. She co-owns Monster Remotes, a specialized film equipment rental company. With Katina Sossiadis wrote and co-directed the short film Lynn’s Wake. Katina also completed a documentary Virgins of New York. A college film professor, Katina directed her first play in 2016 and was an Associate Producer on a feature film.

* 2019 Sarasota Film Festival
* 2019 Sunscreen Film Festival

Friday, June 7 at 5:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

BACK TO THE TOP

Leonidas, a 33-year old punk rock paraplegic and his friends plan to climb on the highest peak of Mount Olympus. For whom is it going to be more difficult?

Stratis Chatzielenoudas was born in Athens and studied drawing, painting and Electrical Engineering in Technological Institute of Larissa. He has been working in the film industry since 2006 as Assistant Director and Casting Director. He has directed commercials, short films, documentaries, and TV shows. His films have been nominated in many international film festivals.

* 2018 Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – Audience Award, ERT Award
* 2018 International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra
* 2018 Athens International Film Festival

Friday, June 7 at 7:45 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

½ NEW YEAR

An ensemble dramedy, about a group of friends who celebrate 6 months into a year with a big party. Last year, relationships were tested and truths were revealed that would forever change the way this fun-loving group sees the world and each other. This year, pieces are still being picked up as the group bands together to wish one of their own a farewell, as he prepares to move cross-country.

Tom has been involved in film, television, and theater for over a decade. His career began at Clark University earning a B.A. in Film and Technical Theater. He’s designed lighting for dozens of plays including an entry in the Dublin Fringe Festival.

* 2019 Hoboken Film Festival in Greenwood Lake
* 2019 Vero Beach Film Festival Florida

Friday, June 7 at 8:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

CLIFFS OF FREEDOM

The story of an ill-fated romance between a young Greek village girl and a conflicted Turkish officer during the dawn of the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire in 1821.

Friday, June 7 at 9:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

HOLY BOOM

Multiple storylines take place in a multicultural area of Athens during Orthodox Easter. The lives of four strangers, who live in the same neighborhood, change dramatically when, on Palm Sunday, the neighborhood’s postbox is blasted just for laughs. The consequences are relentless while Thalia watches everyone in the neighborhood, having lost her only chance to find happiness.

Maria Lafi studied Photography and Audiovisual Arts at Technological Educational Institute of Athens and Film Direction at Hellenic Cinema and Television School of Stavrakos in Athens. Now she studies Master of Arts in Video Production, Audiovisual Media and Motion Graphics at West Attica University. “Holy Boom” is her first feature film.

* 2019 Festival International Du Film De Fes Morocco – Grand Prix
* 2019  Aswan International Women Film Festival – Best Screenplay Award & 1st Actress Award
* 2019  II Festival de cine Chipriota y Griego en Barcelona, Spain – Best Film & Audience Award
* 2018 Thessaloniki International Film Festival – Greek Films Greece
* 2018 Tirana International Film Festival  – Best Balkan Film
* 2018 Festival de Cine de Zaragoza Spain –  Best Feature Film

Saturday, June 8 at 1:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

THE MOUNTAIN TEARS

The tears of the mountain’ follows the odyssey of a company of stonemasons during the troublesome first years of the previous century. Driven away from their land, with war at their heels, cut off by winter, they will perish one by one. Only Markos, the master of the builders, will keep going, like a modern Ulysses, relentless in his quest.

Born in Athens in 1956, Stelios Charalampoloulos studied economics and film in Greece, followed by post-graduate studies in Paris. He was the publisher of the art magazine Graphi. He has published a poetry collection as well.

Saturday, June 8 at  3:15 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

IN THIS LAND NOBODY KNEW HOW TO CRY

Something magical is happening in a small uncharted island, somewhere in the Aegean Sea: Two unsuspecting foreigners, a French member of the European Parliament and a young economist, arrive in idyllic Armenaki with a fishing boat and become acquainted with the bizarre lifestyle and subversive moral values of its people and let themselves get carried away by the vortex of love and this charming place that has the power to change people’s lives.

Giorgos Panousopoulos lives and works in Athens. He was the leading director of photography, working with various well known Greek directors. He directed his first film in 1967, which was subsequently censored by the Greek junta. Τill today he has directed 7 more feature films. Being a cinematographer, he has been director, producer, scriptwriter, DP and editor of some of his films.

* 2018 Montreal The World Film Festival
* 2018 Busan IFF World Panorama
* 2018 Athens Premier nights IFF
* 2018 Thessaloniki IFF

Saturday, June 8 at 5:45 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

STILL RIVER

Anna and Petros, a Greek couple living in Siberia, are shocked to learn that Anna is pregnant with no prior intercourse. With Petros looking for a logical explanation and Anna turning to the spiritual for answers, their previously unshakeable bond starts to falter and cracks begin to show. Set against the striking frozen landscapes of Siberia, “Still River” is a haunting, touching suspense drama about love, trust, and faith struggling in the face of doubt.

Angelos Frantzis was born in Athens and studied film direction at “INSAS” in Brussels. He has made 5 shorts and 5 feature films. His films have been screened and won awards at many international FF. Besides film directing, Angelos Frantzis has been involved in art projects and has worked as a film critic, and as a cinema teacher.

* 2019 Istanbul IFF
* 2018 Thessaloniki IFF
* 2018 Tallinn Black Nights IFF

Saturday, June 8 at 7:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

LAMBDA PI

Lena Platonos, a Greek artist ahead of her time in terms of her groundbreaking work in electronica, is now receiving a surge of international attention. With the help of collaborators and international musicians of the electronic music scene such as Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and the Red Axes, the film goes back to the time her revolutionary records were made.

Christos Petrou was born in Athens, Greece, where he studied cinema. Works as a director for commercials, music videos, TV, short films. He is currently is in pre-production of his first feature film, a musical.

Saturday, June 8 at 8:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

THE WAITER

Renos, a lonely professional waiter, sees his well-organized life routine changing after an unexpected series of events.

* 2019 Hellenic Academy Awards – Iris Award for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Music, Best Production Design
* 2019 Beijing Film Festival – Best Actor & Best Music Awards
* 2018 Thessaloniki IFF – Best Debut Director &  Best Locations Awards – Awards from the Greek Film Center

Saturday, June 8 at 9:15 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

OBSCURO BARROCO 

Obscuro Barroco is a documentary-fiction about the dizzying heights of gender and metamorphosis. It is also a cinematographic homage to a land of extremes; the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Evangelia Kranioti is a Greek-born director and visual artist based in Paris, working with film, photography, and installations.

* 2018 Berlinale Berlin – Teddy Jury Award
* 2018 Guanajuato IFF, Mexico – Best International Documentary Feature
* 2018 ZineGoak, Spain – Best film KRAK Award
* 2018 Rio International Film Festival – FELIX  Award for Best Documentary Feature

AENIGMA (Animation Short)

Sunday, June 9 at 12:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

9 ANIMATION SHORTS

• Aenigma
• Chimera
• Forest Red
• From the Same Thread
• How Many Hugs?
• Inverse
• Maybe It's Me
• The Leaf of Poplar
• War and Trees

Sunday, June 9 at 2:00 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

KAZANTZAKIS

The true story of the greatest Greek author of the 20th century, Nikos Kazantzakis, based on his autobiography “Report to Greco”.

The award-winning director Ioannis Smaragdis has had a long-standing and creative career, counting many commercial and artistic successes in cinema and television.

* 2018 WorldFest Houston USA – Best Film, Best Leading Actor, Best Photography, Best Music
* 2018 EUFF Toronto, Canada
* 2018 Thessaloniki Film Festival

Sunday, June 9 at 2:30 pm
Egyptian Theatre - Spielberg

NOCTURNE

Once more the town faces a severe water shortage. The chosen one gets prepared for his journey to the cistern, a place that no resident has seen; a place that no emissary has ever returned from. Following the established order, a farewell reception has been organized before the departure.

* 2019 International Film Festival of Larissa – Special Mention for Art Direction
* 2019 Kinoki Film Festival
* 2018 Izmir International Short Film Festival

Sunday, June 9 at 6:00 pm
Closing Night at Egyptian Theatre - Rigler

HER JOB

Panayiota, a 37-year-old illiterate housewife, leads a quiet life with her family in a modest neighborhood in Athens, Greece. To cope with the recession, Panayiota for the first time in her life finds a job as a cleaner and breaks free from domestic monotony. Gradually gains the respect she never had from her family and face again her personal dead ends. But Panayiota cannot be the same anymore.

Nikos Labôt studied film direction in Athens, Greece. He has worked as an assistant director in feature and short films in Greece and France. He has shot music videos, 3 short films, and a creative documentary. Her Job is his first feature film as a director.

* 2019 Athens Iris Award for Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best First Film Director
* 2018 Toronto IFF
* 2018 Warsaw IFF – Best First Film Director.


For more information please visit LAGFF2019