The 65th Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF) will take place from 31 October-10 November, featuring a mix of in-person screenings and online events. The festival will showcase a diverse line-up of 252 movies, including both full-length and short films, along with star appearances, world premieres, master classes and competitive sections.

This year’s festival will pay tribute to two cinematic icons: European Film Academy president Juliette Binoche and Academy Award-nominated actor Ralph Fiennes. Both will receive honorary Golden Alexander Awards in recognition of their outstanding contributions to film. TIFF will also screen The Return [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Uberto Pasolini, marking the third collaboration between the two actors.

In addition to honouring international stars, the festival will celebrate Greek cinema with a tribute to filmmaker Panos H Koutras, who will also receive an honorary Golden Alexander. Renowned casting director Ellen Lewis – well known for her longstanding collaboration with Martin Scorsese – will offer a master class, sharing insights from her career and discussing the intricacies of the casting process.

The festival will open with Maria [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Pablo Larraín, starring Angelina Jolie, while the closing ceremony will feature The End [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Joshua Oppenheimer
scheda film], directed by two-time Academy Award nominee Joshua Oppenheimer, who will present the film in person.

TIFF 2024 will feature four international competition categories, with substantial cash prizes on offer. The International Competition includes 12 films, three of which hail from Greece. This section will hand out the Golden Alexander "Theo Angelopoulos" (€10,000), the Silver Alexander for Best Direction (€5,000), and prizes for Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay or Artistic Achievement. The selection includes Arcadia [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Yorgos Zois
scheda film] by Yorgos Zois (Greece/Bulgaria/USA), Edge of Night [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Türker Süer (Germany/Turkey), Happy Holidays [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Scandar Copti
scheda film] by Scandar Copti (Palestine/Germany/France/Italy/Qatar), Julie Keeps Quiet [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Leonardo van Dijl
scheda film] by Leonardo Van Dijl (Belgium/Sweden), Meat [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Dimitris Nakos
scheda film] by Dimitris Nakos (Greece), On Falling [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Laura Carreira
scheda film] by Laura Carreira (UK/Portugal), Pierce [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Nelicia Low
scheda film] by Nelicia Low (Singapore/Taiwan/Poland), September Says [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Ariane Labed
scheda film] by Ariane Labed (Ireland/UK/Germany), She Loved Blossoms More [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Yannis Veslemes (Greece/France), To a Land Unknown [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Mahdi Fleifel
scheda film] by Mahdi Fleifel (UK/Palestine/France/Greece/Netherlands/Germany/Qatar/Saudi Arabia), Under the Volcano [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Damian Kocur
scheda film] by Damian Kocur (Poland), and Went up the Hill by Samuel Van Grinsven (New Zealand/Australia).

The Meet the Neighbors+ Competition is also showcasing 12 films. This strand celebrates regional cinema and cultural exchange, with awards including the Golden Alexander "Michel Dimopoulos" (€10,000) and the Silver Alexander for Best Direction (€5,000). Featured films include The Exiles [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Belén Funes (Spain/Chile), Holy Electricity [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Tato Kotetishvili
scheda film] by Tato Kotetishvili (Georgia/Netherlands), Hunt [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Christos Pitharas
scheda film] by Christos Pitharas (Greece), Ink Wash [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Sarra Tsorakidis (Romania/Greece/Denmark), Killerwood [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Christos Massalas (Greece), The Mohican [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Frédéric Farrucci
scheda film] by Frédéric Farrucci (France), New Dawn Fades [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Gürcan Keltek
scheda film] by Gürcan Keltek (Turkey/Germany/Italy/Norway/Netherlands), Red Path [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Lotfi Achour (Tunisia/France/Belgium/Poland/Saudi Arabia/Qatar), Riviera [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Orfeas Peretzis (Greece/France), Thank You for Banking with Us! [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Laila Abbas (Palestine/Germany/Saudi Arabia/Qatar/Egypt), U Are the Universe [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Pavlo Ostrikov
scheda film] by Pavlo Ostrikov (Ukraine/Belgium), and Vittoria [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Alessandro Cassigoli e Cas…
scheda film] by Alessandro Cassigoli and Casey Kauffman (Italy).

As for the Film Forward Competition, which highlights innovative storytelling, it also features 12 films competing for the Golden Alexander (€8,000) and the Silver Alexander Special Jury Award (€4,000). The selection includes The Ballad of Suzanne Césaire by Madeleine Hunt-Ehrlich (USA), Café 404 by Alexandros Tsilifonis (Greece), The Hyperboreans by Cristóbal León and Joaquín Cociña (Chile), I Saw the TV Glow by Jane Schoenbrun (USA), Invention by Courtney Stephens (USA), Kyuka - Before Summer’s End [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Kostis Charamountanis
scheda film] by Kostis Charamountanis (Greece/North Macedonia), Maldives by Daniel Bolda (Greece), Sugar Island [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Johanné Gómez Terrero
scheda film] by Johanné Gómez Terrero (Dominican Republic/Spain), Tale of Shepherds [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Jaime Puertas Castillo
scheda film] by Jaime Puertas (Spain), Universal Language by Matthew Rankin (Canada), When the Phone Rang [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Iva Radivojević
scheda film] by Iva Radivojević (Serbia/USA) and Xoftex [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Noaz Deshe
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Finally, the Immersive Competition returns with a selection of eight films. This category celebrates cutting-edge virtual- and augmented-reality projects, with a Golden Alexander Award of €2,000 up for grabs. An out-of-competition highlight will be Intangible, an installation by Danish artist Carl Emil Carlsen.

Once again this year, the festival incorporates podcasts, with ten Greek- and English-language offerings competing for the Best Podcast Award (€2,000). Additionally, 17 more podcasts will be showcased in the Nexus section. Podcasters aged 25-35 participating in either competition will be eligible for the ENS Louis Lumière – French Institute of Greece Award, recognising emerging talent in audio documentary creation. All podcasts will be accessible online via the festival's website.