Director of festival, Dimitri Eipides, opens ceremony

CLOSING CEREMONY 13TH TDF

The 13th Thessaloniki Documentary - Images of the 21st Century ended on Saturday, March 19, 2011.

The closing ceremony was held in the packed Olympion theatre, flagship venue of the TDF. Festival Director Dimitris Eipides welcomed the audience by saying that “the Documentary Festival’s goal is always geared towards the audience. We want to see our theatres filling up, because today documentaries are more than ever a necessity.

Current events are shaking us up and the Festival aims to address our worries; it constitutes a hopeful effort to move and motivate people. We believe that these goals were achieved, as attendance this year showed a 20% increase. For us, this is the biggest and most meaningful reward”. Mr Eipides noted that during the 13th TDF, 233 films were screened, coming from 52 different countries. He took stock of the event’s most powerful moments and themes, such as the Panel Discussion of the How I Am: Challenging Perceptions tribute (on developmental and intellectual disabilities); the compelling presence of this year’s Greek documentary production; the 2 scholarships going out to immigrant children towards studying; the live streaming project that connected Thessaloniki with Corfu, Patras, Rethymno and Nicosia, where audiences were able to simultaneously enjoy films screened during the TDF, as well as the directors’ post-screening Q&As. Mr Eipides thanked the Festival’s sponsors, collaborators and supporters, such as the Ministry of Culture, the Municipality of Thessaloniki, the Greek Film Centre, the Region of Central Macedonia Intermediary Managing Authority and many others. He also thanked his collaborators and the volunteers who worked hard for the realization of the event, and mentioned that the 14th TDF will take place from 9 to 18 March 2012.

Mr Eipides’ speech was followed by the awarding of the 13th TDF various prizes (see the list of the awards).

The film screened after the ceremony was David Andre’s Everlasting Sorrow, Life after the Death Penalty, winner of the Amnesty International Award.

The  President of the FIPRESCI jury at this year's TDF, Paolo Portugal, awards the award for Best Doc Film to... PARADISE HOTEL by director Sophia Tzavella, Bulgaria, 2010

Awards the best film in the HABITAT section to:
CLOSE TO HEAVEN (DEM HIMMEL GANZ NAH) by Titus Faschina, Germany/Romania, 2010

Director David Andre, of the doc film EVERLASTING SORROW, LIFE AFTER THE DEATH PENALTY (UNE PEINE INFINIE, HISTOIRE D'UN CONDAMNE A MORT)  France, 2010, accepts the award for the best film dealing with human rights issues at 13th Thessaloniki Doc Film Fest