English
Greek filmmaker Jacqueline Lentzou claimed the top prize at the Thessaloniki Film Festival on Sunday. Her film “A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra” won the Golden Alexander for best feature film in the Arrivals international competition section.
Lentzou’s Film Arrives From Venice and Beyond
The film marks Lentzou’s second feature. It premiered earlier at the Venice Film Festival’s Horizons strand, where it earned the best director award. Since then, it has screened at the New York Film Festival, the BFI London Film Festival and the Busan Film Festival.
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Inspired by true events, the film follows Jo, an unruly and melancholic 15-year-old played by newcomer Evia Andriopoulou. Jo drifts through a seemingly ordinary day until a classmate named Phaedra, played by Anastasia Gouliamaki, sings an old love ballad that moves her to tears. That moment transforms her unremarkable day into one full of possibility, tragedy and change.
The film collected three awards in total on Sunday. Andriopoulou also received a Special Mention for her performance.
Other Winners in the Arrivals Section
The Silver Alexander for best director went to Pauline Julier and Nicolas Chapoulier for “Les Indes.” Their debut feature premiered at Venice Days and follows three men transporting a painting across war-torn Europe in 1652.
Best actor honors went to Caique Copque and Italo Martins for “The Riverbank,” a queer erotic thriller from Brazilian directors Matheus Farias and Enock Carvalho. The film premiered in competition at Locarno. Best actress went to Arisa Sasaki for “Titanic Ocean,” Konstantina Kotzamani’s debut feature. That film premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section and tells a coming-of-age story set at a Japanese boarding school for aspiring mermaids.
Meet the Neighbors+ and Film Forward Results
In the Meet the Neighbors+ section, which highlights debut and sophomore films from 36 countries across Southeastern Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East, the Golden Alexander went to “Dua” by Kosovan filmmaker Blerta Basholli. Her second feature premiered in Cannes’ Critics’ Week and follows a 13-year-old girl growing up in the shadow of the Kosovo War.
The Silver Alexander for best director in that section went to Abdallah Alkhatib for “Chronicles From the Siege.” The film, which won the Berlinale’s Perspectives award for debuts, presents vignettes of Palestinian lives in Gaza and in refugee camps.
Best actor in Meet the Neighbors+ went to Alexis Manenti and Julian Świeżewski for “Flesh and Fuel.” French director Pierre Le Gall’s film about two long-distance truck drivers in a passionate relationship also earned Le Gall the best screenplay prize. Meanwhile, Maria Petrova won best actress for “Hold Onto Me,” a Cypriot film that previously won the Sundance Audience Prize.
In the Film Forward section, the Golden Alexander went to “I Plant My Hand in the Garden” by Hoda Taheri and Boris Hadžija. Rob Rice won the Silver Alexander for “Ponderosa,” whose star Alexis Blendel also took best actress. Best actor went to Alexis Kalofolias for “Under the Judas Tree,” and Argyris Germanidis received the Best Artistic Achievement award for “Particles of Dust.”
