Greek Film Festival 2025 – 30^th Anniversary Season

Greek Film Festival 2025 – 30^th Anniversary Season

14 – 26 October 2025 | Melbourne

The Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) is proud to present the 30th Greek Film Festival (GFF), celebrating three decades of Greek cinema in Melbourne. Running from 14 – 26 October 2025, this year’s festival promises an unforgettable lineup of new feature films, documentaries, and a curated retrospective of iconic films from the Festival’s 30-year history.

Festival Highlights

• Opening Night: Kapetan Mihalis, a powerful historical drama directed by Kostas Haralambous and based on the beloved novel by Nikos Kazantzakis.
• Tribute: Renowned Greek actor, screenwriter, and director Renos Haralambidis is celebrated for his distinctive performances and enduring contribution to Greek cinema.
• 30-Year Retrospective: A curated selection of classic Greek films from the Festival’s catalogue, offering audiences the chance to revisit or discover iconic stories spanning three decades.

Also showing at the 30th Greek Film festival this year are:

Renos Haralambidis' 4 Black Suits

Christos Dimas' A Journey to the Stars

Tassos Boulmetis' A Touch of Spice

Renos Haralambidis' Athens Midnight Radio  

Pantelis Voulgaris' Brides

Renos Haralambidis' Cheap Smokes

Marinos Kartikkis' Diversion

Yorgos Lanthimos' Dogtooth

Dimitris Bavellas' Dourgouti Town

Rachel Suissa's Greek Mothers Never Die

Pantelis Voulgaris' It's A Long Road

Kostas Haralambous' Kapetan Mihalis

Pantelis Voulgaris' Little England

Pablo Larrain's Maria

Angelos Frantzis' Murphy's Law

Renos Haralambidis' No Budget Story

Costas Ferris' Rembetiko

Orfeas Peretzis' Riviera

George Kordellas' Roza of Smyrna

Michalis Reppas & Thanasis Papathanasiou's Safe Sex

Yannis Tsimitselis' Santa's Snow Candy

Emilios Avraam's Smaragda - I Got Thick Skin and I Can't Jump

Yorgos Tsemberopoulos' Stelios

Steve Krikris' Super Paradise

Dimitris Spyrou's The Flea

Renos Haralambidis' The Heart of the Beast

David Field's The Kink

Pantelis Voulgaris' The Last Note

Anthony Maras' The Palace

Uberto Pasolini's The Return

Alkinos Tsilimidos' The Taverna

Aliki Danezi Knutsen's Together Apart

Kay Pavlou's Two Homelands

Where & When

The Festival will run from 14 to 26 October 2025, hosted across multiple Melbourne venues to ensure a spectacular cinematic experience for all attendees:

• Astor Theatre
• Palace Cinema Como
• Palace Balwyn Cinema
• Palace Cinemas Pentridge

Full Program & Tickets

The complete program, film synopses, and ticketing information are now available. Explore the full lineup and secure your seats for this milestone season. 

View Program & Book Tickets

Join us as we celebrate 30 years of Greek cinema - a festival of storytelling, culture, and community that brings together filmmakers, audiences, and generations of movie lovers.

The 2024 Greek Film Festival is set to captivate audiences with a vibrant selection of films and documentaries that celebrate Greek culture through cinema. Presented by the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM), this year's festival will run from 15 October to 27 October in an expanded venue offering that includes the iconic Astor Theatre, Palace Cinema Como, Palace Balwyn Cinema, and for the first time Palace Cinemas Pentridge.

The festival kicks off on 15 October with the hilarious comedy Hear Who’s Talking starring Meletis Ilias (To Soi Sou, To Proxenio Tis Ioulias). The opening night film sets the tone for a program that includes 23 feature films and 7 documentaries, each offering a unique glimpse into contemporary Greek society.

A special highlight of this year’s festival is the Australian premiere of the award winning The Murderess. Based on the classic novel by Alexandros Papadiamantis, The Murderess takes place on a remote island in Greece, circa 1900. Hadoula, trapped in her own mother’s rejection, struggles to survive the dictates of a patriarchal society. The film has been praised by critics, winning 12 awards and receiving 14 nominations at Film Festivals world-wide. The leading role is played by Kariofylia Karabeti (Eftihia), who charms the audience with her astounding performance.

The documentary section of the festival packs quite a punch, featuring a curated selection of intriguing films. Key amongst these is the Australian made Ange & The Boss – Puskas in Australia by award-winning directors Tony Wilson and Cam Fink. The great Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas’s storied playing and coaching career ended in the relative backwater of Middle Park in Melbourne, where he coached a South Melbourne Hellas team captained by current Tottenham Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou. This sporting story of a humble football colossus in soccer's new world is full of quirky anecdotes and culminates in a gripping championship finale. It also tells the story of Australia’s ethnic football heritage and how it sustained new arrivals.

Peter Ewer, author of The Forgotten Anzacs, and accomplished filmmaker John Irwin bring to audiences the feature-length documentary Anzac: The Greek Chapter. In April 1941, Hitler launched his invasion of Greece. In homes across Australia and New Zealand, people feared what lay ahead for their loved ones sent as part of the Allied force to defend Greece. This documentary tells the story of that valiant defence like never before. Drawing on over 130 hours of veteran interviews, viewers can see and listen to the story of the campaign from the veterans themselves. Watch them make their way north to stand alongside their Greek comrades as part of the Allied defence force. Listen to them recount the bitter battles and sorrows of the campaign and hear them praise their Greek hosts who fought with them and helped them. Narrated by Barrie Cassidy, whose father served in the campaign, the documentary offers a unique account of this campaign and the Anzacs who served there.

Whilst contemporary cinema is the mainstay of the Festival’s program, closing night this year pays tribute to a giant of the golden age of Greek cinema Mary Chronopoulou with a very special screening of the 1968 classic GORGONES KAI MAGKES.

Also showing at the 29^th Greek Film festival this year are:

Adonis Florides’ AFRICA STAR

Apollo Bakopoulo’s ALIGNED

Sofia Exarchou’s ANIMAL

Kostas Spiropoulo’s ARCADIA CHAMPAGNE D’ORIENT

Antonis Tsoni’s BRANDO WITH A GLASS EYE

Foivos Kontogianni’s BROKEN SOUND

Ioakim Mylonas DETACHED HOUSE

Demetra Giannakopoulos LOVE REWIND

Sotiris Goritsas WHERE WE LIVE

Stergios Paschos THE LAST TAXI DRIVER

Alexandros Voulgaris POLYDROSO

Nikolai Hamel THE RHAPSODIST

Kostoula Tomadaki MOTHER OF THE STATION

Konstantinos Fragoulis IN A FISHBOWL

Haris Vafeiadis LITTLE THINGS THAT WENT WRONG

Vicky Arvelaki & Katerina Mpikaki THE LAST PRAYER

Christina Ioakeimidi MEDIUM

Myrto Patsalidou, Maria Louka GRIEF-THOSE WHO REMAIN

Aris Dorizas YANI SPANOS: A LIFE BEHIND THE MARQUEE

Michalis Asthenidis,Vasilis Louras Mary, Marianna, Maria – The Unsung Greek Years of Callas

Vasilis Christofilakis GUEST STAR

Periklis Hoursoglou THE PROMOTION

The 12th Greek Student Film Festival also makes a triumphant return, providing a platform for emerging filmmakers to showcase their talent and creativity.

As we approach this year’s Greek Film Festival, we invite you to immerse yourself in the rich array of film selections and documentaries. With a lineup that promises to inspire and entertain, the 2024 Greek Film Festival is not just an event—it’s a celebration of the creativity that defines Greek cinema

The 29^th Greek Film festival is presented by the Greek Community of Melbourne at Palace Cinemas across Melbourne and is sponsored by Oasis Coffee, Procal Dairies, Joannides Funerals, FIX Hellas Beer.

For more information and to book tickets, please visit the official website of the Greek Film Festival.