Festival Lovers Quick Talk with Michael Kalopaidis

Name: Michael Kalopaidis

Who is Who: Zedem Media, Audiovisual director Cyprus Film Days

I’ve never worked for Cyprus Film Days… 2010. Wow, I didn’t realize it was already 4 years ago!

I remember the first day of filming… when I met the Art Committee. From the first moment they beat me like people with the passion they have for what they do.

What makes the festival special… it’s the beautiful atmosphere. Especially in the Limassol screenings due to the Heroes Square.

As a creator I consider the work that the festival does… it is very important because, like the Short Film Festival and the Lemesos International Documentary Festival, gives the opportunity to the cypriot public to watch films that otherwise would not come to the cinemas, films that represent the art of cinema, who have something to say, and not simply seek to sell.

This year I look forward to seeing… To “adapting Borders”, a documentary by Iva Radivojevic, who lived for many years in Cyprus, and now lives and works in New York. “Evaluating Borders”, however, has been filmed in Cyprus and addresses the issue of immigration.

The film I watched in the framework of the festival and I stood out was…. the” cutthroat ” by Giannis Economides.

I remember features… the comments I hear over time from the festival guests, who come from abroad without expecting anything specific and are impressed with the very good organization and selection of films.

I hope that sometime… the festival will also be hosted in Larnaca. It’s kind of unfair to see the timeless world of the Urn to travel to Limassol and to Nicosia to watch these movies and there’s not even a day of screenings in Larnaca, so we can start to “build” the culture of world cinema in other cities.
Curriculum Vitae:
Michael studied Media Management & Television at Columbia College, Chicago and graduated from Middlesex University, London, Media & Cultural Studies and Media Literacy. In 2008 he returned to Cyprus where he founded Zedem Media, a production company that is involved in the production of videos and animation for organizations in Cyprus and abroad. He is president of the Film Club of Larnaca, Famagusta, and is an avid supporter of film festivals, in particular the International Documentary film Festival in Limassol, in which he dreams one day to be screened one of his documentaries.