The Psarokokalo International Short Film Festival will be held from July 10 to 17, transforming Folegandros, Greece, into an international creative and cultural destination. The festival will showcase 136 films from 42 countries.
A celebration of cinema that serves as a platform for the new generation of creators and an opportunity for cinephiles to rethink the world through the lens, screenings are not limited to the screen. The festival extends to masterclasses, open discussions and networking evenings, composing a multidimensional cultural experience — all this under the light of the Meltemi and the watchful gaze of the Aegean.
One of the most distinctive features of the festival is the “Environment and Architecture” section, which explores the interaction between the space we inhabit and the nature surrounding us. Through documentaries and tributes, the festival raises questions about sustainability, social justice and our human place in an ever-changing landscape. The collaboration with the Canadian Centre for Architecture enriches the program, bringing the Groundwork series, which follows three architects trying to redefine the concept of space in different corners of the planet — from the islands of China to the heart of Brazil and the centres of Europe.
In the International competition section, young and established creators present works that reflect their social and personal quests. From Alex Lawther’s Rhoda starring Emma D’Arcy (House of the Dragon) and Juliet Stevenson, to Matty Sidle’s experimental Bozo Over Roses starring Cate Blanchett, and Nick Blake’s dark comedy The Viewing starring award-winning actors Patsy Ferran and Leo Bill. Psarokokalo also presents Alexander Thompson’s Em & Selma Go Griffin Hunting starring Milly Shapiro (Hereditary) and Pollyanna McIntosh (Walking Dead), the enchanting anime BUDŌ and the powerful experimental documentary Workers’ Wings from director Ilir Hasanaj. The national competition section offers a selection of young emerging talents from Greece and Cyprus, from What Mary Didn’t Know directed by Konstantina Kotzamani to Pigeons are dying, when the city is on fire directed by Stavros Markoulakis and The Cyprus Bycatch Project directed by Constantinos Christou.
Bozo Over Roses
Each year, the festival highlights the cinema of a selected country; in 2025, the baton is passed to Mexico. From Eduardo Moreno Fernández’s A Whisper Starts a Fire, in which Olivia (Arcelia Ramírez) struggles with the artificial alteration of her voice, to the documentary Voices from the Abyss, which follows the legendary cliff divers of Acapulco, Mexican cinema brings a wind of rebellion and tradition to the festival.
Voices from the Abyss
The Jury behind the Psarokokalo Awards is a group of twenty-two personalities who combine experience, creativity and a multicultural perspective. Artists, directors, actors and architects from countries such as Armenia, South Korea, Brazil, France, Mexico, and, of course, Greece, join forces to highlight the strongest voices of the festival. Each jury — fiction, animation, documentary, architecture and national — composes a multifaceted dialogue, reflecting the variety and depth of global short cinema.
Psaroloco: The Children and Youth Festival
For the first time, Psarokokalo incorporates a separate section for children and families, bringing to the stage selected films from Psaroloco, an international festival dedicated to the youngest cinephiles, cultivating a love of cinema and critical thinking from an early age through stories that touch young and old.
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