Thessaloniki Documentary Festival
"Images of the 21st Century": every March, documentary brings the world to the port warehouses.
If the Film Festival is November's celebration of fiction, the Documentary Festival is March's celebration of reality, and for many locals it is the favourite of the two.
The history
It was founded in 1999 on the initiative of Dimitris Eipidis, who remained its director until 2016. The proposal to create it was made on 15 March 1999 at the Olympion on Aristotelous Square.
Its full title, "Images of the 21st Century", states its ambition: to record the world at the moment it changes. Within two decades it grew into one of the most significant competitive documentary institutions internationally.
Where it happens
In the same venues as its sister festival:
- The historic Olympion on Aristotelous Square.
- Four screening rooms built inside old Thessaloniki Port Authority warehouses.
- Screenings in the city's neighbourhoods, so the festival doesn't stay confined to the centre.
Why it's worth it
Documentary draws a different audience from fiction: more talkative, more political, more willing to stay behind afterwards. The conversations with directors after screenings often run longer than the films themselves, and the atmosphere at the port in March — the sea beside you, cold still in the air — is something audiences come back for.
March in the city
This is the month Thessaloniki comes out of winter. Days lengthen, tables return to the pavements, and the festival serves as the year's first big appointment after the holidays.
Good to know
- Exact dates and the programme are announced each year by the organisers.
- Nearest metro station for the Olympion and the port: Venizelou.
- The same organisation runs the Film Festival in November.