Press Releases

The International Short Film Festival of Cyprus (ISFFC) returns with a 14th edition that aims to bring us on a cinematic journey across the globe, through stories that showcase emerging talents in both the local and the international scene. Like every year, the festival is bringing together artistic voices from a range of backgrounds in the hope of encouraging fascinating cultural collaborations. The motto of this year's festival gets us all in the mood: see you at the Square!

To decide this year’s awards in both the International and National Competition Sections, an International Jury of five acclaimed film industry professionals is joining the Festival.

The jury will be led by president Agron Domi, founder and director of Tirana International Film Festival.

The Jury:

Agron Domi is the founder and director of Tirana International Film Festival (Academy Awards® & EFA qualifying) since 2003. He is a member of the European Film Academy. He is also the founder of Tirana Film Institute, Production & Distribution co., and Albania Film Commission. He is also a distributor of European films in Albania, projects supported by the Media Programme - Creative Europe. He has served as a jury member in many film festivals around the world. In 1998, he co-founded FASADA Studio, the first publicity, graphic design, and video production company in Albania. He also produced feature, short, and documentary films, as well as TV commercials etc. Since 2014, he has been the managing director of CreativeMornings Tirana, an international project running in more than 240 cities.

John Canciani has been a film collector since he was a teenager. He acquired his first experience in curating films when he founded and organised a film club in Winterthur. In 2009, he became a member of the selection team and board member at the Swiss Youth Film Festival in Zurich. The same year, he joined the Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur and was, amongst others, Head of Youth Programme, Programmer of the International Competition, and assistant to the Artistic Director. In 2012, he was appointed as Artistic Director. John is also a film curator at Kino Cameo Winterthur, where he advises the programme manager, regularly curates film programmes, and moderates film talks. He holds a master’s in Advanced Studies in Curating from ZHdK and was Editor of Issue No. 23 of the magazine on curating The Future of Short Film. He is a member of the Swiss and European Film Academies, and a board member at Pro Short and the Short Film Conference. Since 2019, he has been a board member of Visions SudEst, where he also selects projects for the production and post-production of feature films and documentaries. He advises festivals, film schools, and filmmakers on programming, festival strategies, scripts, and editing.

Monica Nicolaidou is a Cypriot award-winning producer and co-owner of Filmblades. She studied 3D Computer Graphics Animation and Special Effects at the Instituto Europeo di Milano in Italy. She started her career working as a 3D animator for local production companies, specialising in films and television commercials. In 2002, she began working as an independent producer for television series, international commercials, and live show events. In 2007, Monica founded the production company Filmblades together with producer George Pantzis. Today, Filmblades is one of Cyprus’s leading production companies having produced numerous feature films and shorts, which have been screened in prestigious festivals around the world, winning multiple awards. Notable productions include internationally acclaimed films .dog by Yianna Americanou and Fish N Chips by Elias Demetriou.

Amos Geva is the co-founder and head of industry at T-Port, a non-profit platform that promotes emerging talent and showcases over 1,800 independent and student films globally. Since 2018, he has led workshops and industry events, mentoring film students on the challenges of short film distribution. He is also a Berlin-based film producer, and serves on multiple film festival selection committees and development platforms, bridging the gap between the industry and emerging filmmakers. A graduate of programmes such as Atelier Ludwigsburg-Paris and Berlinale Talents, Amos has earned accolades both as a producer and director. He is a member of the European Film Academy.

Denise Nikolakou is a psychologist and integrative psychotherapist. She specializes in Cinema Therapy, holding European certification from the Zur Institute and training in group clinical psychology from the University of Athens (EKPA). Since 2014, she has been facilitating self-awareness and development groups through the art of cinema. She leads the Cinematherapy programme at Drama International Short Film Festival, and introduced the programme to schools in 2021. Throughout the programme, she has collaborated with prominent figures in cinema, such as Oscar-winning director Pawel Pawlikowski, Konstantinos Giannaris, Thanos Tokakis, Alexandros Logothetis, Lefteris Charitos, and others. Her articles are published in scientific journals, and she hosts a series of Cinematherapy podcasts for LiFo on Spotify.

The festival is co-organised by the Department of Contemporary Culture of the Deputy Ministry of Culture, and the Rialto Theatre.

More information about the programme of screenings will be announced in the coming weeks.

For more information about the festival, visit www.isffc.com.cy and its social media pages.

Screenings are suitable for 18+.

All films are screened in their original language with English and Greek subtitles.

For the press release in Turkish click here.

(EK)