‘Under the Sky of Damascus’ Wins Thessaloniki Doc Festival’s Top Prize

The film Under the Sky of Damascus by exiled Syrian filmmakers Heba Khaled, Talal Derki and Ali Wajeeh won the International Competition Golden Alexander at the 25th Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, TiDF.

Under the Sky of Damascus follows five young Syrian women, Farah, Eliana, Inana, Souhir, and Grace, who want to produce a play based on individual women's stories.

They record stories from actresses to factory workers to stay-at-home mothers; what emerges are stories of abuse, blackmail, and even imprisonment at the hands of husbands, brothers, fathers, employers and powerful officials who use their patriarchal power to keep them trapped without access to justice.

The film has secured a place in the selection shortlist for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film.

The awards ceremony took place under the shadow of the deadly train accident on February 28 that claimed the lives of 57 people. The opening and closing ceremonies and all festival events were canceled as a sign of respect for the victims.

"In these difficult moments we experience, wishing to provide the audience with the chance to discover Greek films that touch upon issues and concerns shared by all of us, we extend the time window for the online screenings of the films taking part in the sections Platform and From screen to Screen (online.filmfestival.gr)," a press release issued by the TiDF said.

The Silver Alexander, which is accompanied by a 5,000-euro cash prize, went to the documentary Who I Am Not by Tünde Skovrán, which is about a South African beauty queen who plunges into an identity crisis after finding out she is intersex.  A Special Mention was bestowed on Narrow Path to Happiness by...