Media / Press

With 92,000 spectators and visitors at screenings in physical venues and online, as well as at events, the 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival called it a wrap. From October 30th to November 9th, this year’s edition hosted premieres, fascinating discussions, masterclasses, exhibitions, and parties. It welcomed glamorous figures of world cinema, including Isabelle Huppert, Indya Moore, Frederick Elmes, Yorgos Tsemberopoulos, Alexander Payne, Daniele Luchetti, György Pálfi, Trine Dyrholm, Ildikó Enyedi, Nanouk Leopold, Jim Sclavunos, Tan Dun.

Within the framework of the TIFF66, the remarkable Greek filmmaker, Yorgos Tsemberopoulos, delivered an exciting masterclass, titled “The Director in the Role of the Midwife,” on Saturday, November 8th, at the Pavlos Zannas theater. This year, the Festival held a large-scale tribute to Yorgos Tsemberopoulos and awarded him the honorary Golden Alexander.

Amidst a warm and touching ambiance, with the filmmakers and the heroes of their films taking center stage, the awards of the 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival were bestowed on Sunday, November 9th, 2025, at Warehouse C. Three films were honored with the Golden Alexander of the Festival’s competition sections. The “Golden Alexander - Theo Angelopoulos” Award was bestowed to Cotton Queen by Suzannah Mirghani. The “Golden Alexander - Michel Dimopoulos” Award of the Meet the Neighbors+ section was given to the film The Last One for the Road by Francesco Sossai, whereas the >>Film Forward Golden Alexander was granted to the film 1001 Frames by Mehrnoush Alia.

The screening of the great success Stelios by Yorgos Tsemberopoulos in universally accessible terms, with the support of Alpha Bank, took place on Friday, November 7th, at the Stavros Tornes theatre, in the presence of the two-times Gold Medal winner in the Paralympic Games, Athanasios Ghavelas, director Yorgos Tsemberopoulos and the film's cast.

Thessaloniki International Film Festival awarded an honorary Golden Alexander for his overall contribution to the art of cinema to the beloved creator Yorgos Tsemberopoulos, in a heart warming event that took place on Thursday, November 6th at the Olympion theatre, before the screening of the film The Enemy Within. The Golden Alexander was awarded by Dennis Iliadis, director and screenwriter, Katerina Bei, screenwriter and vice-president of the Festival's Board of Directors, and Giannis Tsiros, screenwriter.

On Thursday, November 6th, the audience of the 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival had the opportunity to attend a fascinating masterclass, titled “Contrary to Expectation,” delivered by Nikos Panayotopoulos. Engaging in dialogue with the grand tribute of this year’s Festival, “Plot Twist, Beyond the Sixth Sense,” the acclaimed Greek author and scriptwriter analyzed the timeless allure and irresistible power of the plot twist; the reversal of expectations in dramatic (and not only) storytelling.