 |
| Kyma, on the right, is one of the Edipsos locations used in Yerma Photo: Amber Wilkinson |
Chief among them is a modern version of Lorca’s Yerma, directed by Basque filmmaker Lara Izagirre Garizurieta, which has become a Spanish-Greek co-production thanks to Thessaloniki and Evia. It was the subject of a lively workshop at this year’s festival – one of several well-attended events that ran alongside screenings of favourites, including Jurassic Park, African Queen and Deliverance. An International Co-Production: How Yerma Met Greece saw Greek producers Amanda Livanou and Katerina Tzourou, from Neda Film, joined by line producer Anna Zografou and the Mayor of Istiea-Edipsos Ioannis Kontzias to talk about how the production first came together in Thessaloniki before part of it was ultimately shot in Edipsos, where Evia has its hub.
I caught up with Livanou and Tzourou after the event to talk in more detail about the film’s development and its Greek component, which all began during that most isolating recent period for all of us – Covid.
Garizurieta was the producer of 20,000 Species Of Bees and she met Livanou as part of the Agora market event at Thessaloniki, which that year was held, for the first time, entirely online.
“I started coaching the projects then as an outside mentor,” Livanou recalls, “because all of a sudden they had to adapt to the online environment, so they had to do videos and presentations, and the festival said, ‘Can you walk the participants through it?’”
Interestingly, that’s also where Livanou also met Tzourou – who was then volunteering at the festival but who now works at Neda.
The connection between Garizurieta and Livanou continued as 20,000 Species Of Bees went to Berlin, where its star Sofía Otero won the Silver Bear for best performance. They were encouraged to begin to work together on a co-production by Angeliki Vergou, then head of the Agora.
“I’m a big fan of Lorca,” says Livanou. “So we said, ‘Okay, let’s give it a go’.”
 |
| Yerma poster |
The festival’s hub, Kyma, a single room on the shoreline that was once a coffee shop, became a hotel room in Yerma, while the director also shot footage in the open-air cinema in Edipsos and the historic thermal baths.
The film is an adaptation of a stage play revival of the play in Bilbao, written by María Goiricelaya, which is set in the present day and revolves around a woman who is desperate to have a child and who puts everything at stake. Part of the modern element is that she is trying to become pregnant via IVF, which doesn’t work. Ane Pikaza, who played the role onstage is also in the film, alongside Aitor Borobia.
Livanou praised the mayor for his help with the collaboration, and earlier in the discussion on the film, he said: “The Festival succeeds in awakening the local community in many different ways and brings us closer to artists. It enriches our society and makes it more vibrant, and we sincerely hope our collaboration will continue in the future. We also hope this co-production will lead to many more. We constantly learn from you and become better through these experiences.”
“Any sort of artistic gestation takes a long time,” says Livanou. “But then it stays forever.”
As for the festival, the Agora element is very dear to the hearts of local filmmakers as it champions them to a wider audience. “It feels like home,” says Tzourou. “It is mine, literally, because I come from the city but you know that when Thessaloniki Film Festival comes everyone will go, no matter what. It’s a safe place for Greek filmmakers.”
Livanou says: “There’s also a film school there, that Katerina went to and they bring up great people. We have another female producer colleague in the company who is from there.”
She adds: “I’m also older than Katerina and when we started out there was no market in Thessaloniki, so we had to travel in the late 90s and early 00s, at great expense – because the film funds never covered our travel – to Cannes, where you felt completely overwhelmed at the time before we were a successful company. So when they set up the Agora it was a huge win for us – they invite you, they host you, they nurture you and they highlight your work.
“They are very extrovert. They do things in Cannes, they do things in Locarno, and they’re always helpful through their network, whichever festival you go to, whether as a market participant or with a film, they’re always there to help out.”
The Evia portion of Yerma wrapped two weeks ago after a week-long shoot on the island and now the editing has started with a view to the film being ready to show at festivals next year.
