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Judging by the amount of Greek documentary films, which will be screened during the festival of documentaries "Pictures from the 21st century" in Thessaloniki, the only thing one can say with certainty is that documentaries in Greece have no problems.

Let us see, however, awaits viewers in Thessaloniki.

Crisis and Environment

Along with a dedication to Greek immigrant Angelos Ambazoglou, this year's festival had two screenings of documentaries that show the hidden faces of the city and talk about exciting people. A screening of «Meetings with remarkable people» of the director Menelaos Karamanyolis, focuses on people who are different and the documentary series «Docville» describes, without any comment the life in Greek cities today.

Greek crisis and its parameters interest Nikos Katsaounis and Nina Maria Paschalidou in the film «Krisis», Yiorgos Panteleakis in the movie «155 SOLD», Christos Georgiou in the film «Children of the riots», Seraphim Dusias in the film «Greece, I’m in strained», and Stelios Kouloglou in the movie «oligarchy», which, however, examines the origin and development of the global crisis.

The problem of environmental protection has become an urgent call to action in the movies seeking the relationship of men with nature, «Toxic Crisis» by Omiros Evangelinos, «Alienation» by Manos Papadakis and «Island of Gavdos. South there» by Andy Daundaki (the island of  Gavdos is the southernmost point of Greece). At the same time, traditions that are threatened with extinction, are described in the films "Stone walls. Our support in the Aegean Sea" by Amalia Zepou and Lydia Kara, and "Ecological diaries - the silence of the fish» by Harris Raftoyannis, while Yannis Misouridis in " Ecological diaries – Meat, the fork war" raises questions related to human nutrition and environmental equilibrium.

Historical and political memory

Collective memory is traced by the documentaries "Outside the history" by Fofo Terzidou, "The palace of Exarhopoulos" by Christos Kalitsis and the "Island, that we share" by Danae Stylianou. Historical ties and political milestones are examined in the films "25th meridian" by Chrissa Dzelepi and Tanya Hadzigeorgiou, "Girls of the rain" by Alida Dimitriou (which is already screened in cinemas), "Evidence of rebellion" by Manolis Dimelas, "King's Garden" by Fivi Fronista and "Frozen time" by Ilias Yosifidis.

Emigration and Greeks abroad are subject of the plots in the films "In anticipation of the Rose" by Nikos Teodosiou, "Between" by George Salambasi and "Turkish Cretans in Halicarnassus" by Kostas Dandinakis. Finally, the documentary "The first computer in the world: exciting history of the ancient Antikythera mechanism" by Mike Beckham reveals a "code of Leonardo da Vinci", created in ancient Greece.

Exciting immigrant stories are told in the films "Evros, the other shore" (Evros is the Greek name of the Maritsa River) by Chronis Pehlivanidis, "Noup - there is light everywhere" by Nikos Soulis, "Tomorrow would’ve be a new day" by Stefanos Mondelos, "Waiting for the Barbarians" by Kostas Stamatopoulos and "The opposite shore" by Morteza Dzafari.

Urban landscape and the man

The relationship of man with the cityscape is seen in the movies "Mikropolis - Ekali: The Wall" by Yannis Gaitanidis, «Perah Istar» by Elizabeth Laludaki and Massimo Pitsokaro, «Mikropolis - Olympic town: The fence» by Persephone Miliou, " Mikropolis - Palaio Faliro: The window " by Thomas Kiaou and "The scaffolding" by Evripidis Laskaridis. City and history meet in the films "Ambelokipi" by the Group for documentaries of the Municipality of Athens 2011 and "They smoke past" by Stefanos Kakavoulis.

The strength of the human spirit prevails in the movies "The blind fisherman" by Stratis Vogiatzis and Thekla Malamoutes, "My name is Stelios" by Yannis Kaspiris, "The ancient shell" by Nikos Alevras, "Christina" by Harris Ksidyas and "The survivors" by Mary Yanouli. The film "Metaxa, listening to time" by Stavros Psyllakis follows the heroic life of doctors who have cancer in the oncology hospital "Metaxa". Modern heroes play the leading role in the films "Sayomi" by Nikos Dayandas, "Sultan Ahmed Awake" by Nikos Lingouris, "Katinoula" by Myrna Tsapa, "Stavroula" by Ira Dika and "Invisible heroes" by Panagiotis Kunduras.

The man is at the center attention in the stories of the films «The Outcasts» by George Georgopoulos, "I am someone else from the therapy for social integration" by George Zervas and "The word of the isolated" by George Keramidiotis. Finally, stories of the everyday life from Greece and Cyprus to Cameroon, are followed by the documentaries "100 (Alexandras 173, Athens)" by Gerasimos Rigas, "Eleni and Jaume" by Evgenios Yoannou and «To be or not to be Bagyeli» by Nikos Tomopoulos .

Celebrities and music

Phenomenal people fascinate the viewers in movies «Directing Hell» by Christos Houlyaras (dedicated to Nikos Nikolaidis), "Thief of icons" by Panos Tomaidis (dedicated to Spyros Staveris), "Return of Epaminondas Gonatas" by Eva Stefani, "Sakis Papadimitriou – the spirit of the improviser" by Spiros Tsiftsis and "Take the gifts" by Lefteris Xanthopoulos (dedicated to Kiki Dimoula and Titos Patrikios).

Meanwhile, the films «Greek Town, New England» by Nikos Panoutsopoulos and "Tango hasapiko, the dance of the ports" of Constantina Bousbouras and Julia Heyman, travel from Massachusetts to Argentina, to tell the stories of Greeks living in space.

A kind of a musical travelogue is the film of Panos Karkanevatos «Mediterranean Sea: Sicily", while music and history intertwine in the film «Encardia, the dancing rock" by Angelos Kovotsos. The film "Open Microphone" by Nikos Skarendzos describes the hip hop stage.

It is a really encouraging and joyful fact (though somewhat mysterious) that in a time of unbearable economic hardship in all areas of the Greek society, Greek documentary cinema is more productive than ever!