Open Call, Beyond Borders
9th Kastellorizo International
Documentary Festival

For the 9th consecutive year, Beyond Borders | Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival ​​renews its rendez-vous (25/08–01/09/2024) with the cinephile audiences and creators from all over the world and invites us to question rigidly, dichotomies and dipoles, having as its central theme the concept of “twice a stranger”: On the occasion of the exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey, a century ago and the mass exclusion of people from both sides of the borders, the Festival turns its gaze beyond the obvious, questions and reflects on people and lives that were left behind. On personal stories that could not, or did not want to, fit or be assimilated by dominant ideologies and perceptions and were forced into a ceaseless search for acceptance and reconciliation.

Paying a spiritual tribute to these people, who may belong to the past, present or future, the 9th edition of Beyond Borders aspires through its film program, through book launches, art exhibitions, educational programs, lectures and musical performances, to emphasize those subtle nuances of solidarity and humanity and to bring back, through its artistic program, the issue of defending all human rights at every corner of the world. Through the exchange of ideas, the Festival hopes to give a new breath to the everyday reality that surrounds us, synthesizing all the existing elements in a creative palette, in a multicultural melting pot, within which pluralism and intersectionality will be the protagonists .

Considering the rich tradition of Kastellorizo ​​– the natural venue of the Festival – in the production of pearls, we choose to parallel human lives with them: In spite of difficulties and wounds we continue to produce our brightest and most precious hopes!