30/10/2015 - The festival will raise its curtains on 6 November with the Berlinale-awarded Victoria, while Yorgos Zois’ Interruption leads the Greeks in the International Competition

Over 200 films will be screened at this year’s Thessaloniki International Film Festival, which raises its curtains on 6 November with Sebastian Schipper’s Berlinale-awarded adrenaline rush Victoria [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Sebastian Schipper
film profile]. The gathering will conclude on 15 November with Arnaud Desplechin’s My Golden Days [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] serving as the closing film, while Desplechin will also be on hand to present an eclectic retrospective of his work.

Yorgos Zois’ Venice-screened feature debut, Interruption [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Daphné Patakia
interview: Yorgos Zois
film profile] (Greece/France/Croatia), a cinematic blend of social commentary and theatrical drama, will be leading the Greek hopefuls in the International Competition. His film, inspired by the Moscow theatre hostage crisis of 2002, will be coupled with Silent [+see also:
film review
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film profile], Yorgos Gkikapeppas’ follow-up to the FIPRESCI Prize and Greek Film Critics Guild Award winner The City of Children.

The two local titles will be competing against films like Micah Magee’s Berlinale-screened Petting Zoo (Germany/Greece/USA), Runar Runarsson’s San Sebastián winner Sparrows [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Atli Óskar Fjalarsson
interview: Rúnar Rúnarsson
film profile], Marko Skop’s FIPRESCI-awarded Toronto entry Eva Nová [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Marko Škop
film profile] (Slovakia) and Florin Serban’s Box [+see also:
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trailer
film profile], which is the director’s follow-up to his Berlinale-awarded If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle [+see also:
film review
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interview: Ada Condeescu
film profile].

The Golden and Silver Alexanders, along with the festival’s other awards, will be handed out by a five-member international jury chaired by Michele Ray-Gavras, and including Romanian director Corneliu Porumboiu, Greek screenwriter Efthymis Filippou (of The Lobster [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Yorgos Lanthimos
film profile], among others), US film critic Jay Weissberg and French producer Elise Jalladeau.

Athina Rachel Tsangari’s Chevalier [+see also:
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film profile] will enjoy a special screening during the event, while this year’s edition will also hold local premieres of prestigious titles like Radu Jude’s Aferim! [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Radu Jude
film profile], Laszlo Nemes’ Son of Saul [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: László Nemes
interview: László Rajk
film profile] and Aleksandr Sokurov’s Francofonia [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile].