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English Titles H

Hard Goodbyes: My Father

Original title: Disloki Apocheretismi: O Babas Mou
Greece, 2002

Director: Panayotopoulou, Penny
Production company: CL Productions,Twenty Twenty Vision, Penny Panayotopoulou
Co-producers: Greek Film Centre, ERT S.A, Max Productions, Alpha TV, Mythos Productions Ltd (Athens)
Age recommendation: 10 years and up

Synopsis:
Ten year-old Elias lives in Athens at the end of the sixties. When his father dies suddenly, each in their own way, the members of the family try to come to terms with their loss. Only Elias cannot face the separation and refuses to accept reality, continuing to behave as if he was waiting for his father to return from one of his usual business trips. (Giffoni 2003)


Elias, a ten year-old boy who lives in Athens in the late '60s, suddenly loses his father. The members of the family try, each in his own particular way, to deal with the unexpected event… except for the little boy. He cannot shoulder the burden of this separation. He cannot grasp what has happened. He refuses to accept that his father has really died and continues to behave as though he is waiting for him to return from one of his usual business trips. He starts acting strangely with the aim of keeping his father alive inside him. He lies, sends letters to his grandmother as though they are from his father. He continues to play their favorite games with him, acting out both roles of the game. And worst of all he is absolutely sure that his father will return as he had promised so that they can both watch the Americans landing on the moon for the first time on television. But his father cannot keep his promise, which was to be his last. The moon landing takes place. Man takes his leave of his planet, the earth. And so does the little boy who takes his final leave of his father for the first time. Only then does Elias realize that he has been left completely alone. At first he gets angry but in the end he understands. His father could not have done differently. He won't wait for him any more. He grows up abruptly. A new era begins for man but also for young Elias. (Greek Film Centre)

Festivals:
Locarno 2002 (awarded), Chicago 2002, Hamburg 2002, Olympia 2002, Vienna 2003, Oulu 2003

Website: www.gfc.gr/3/31/film.asp?id=409

World sales address/es:
Greek Film Centre

Sold to:
BKF (D)