Yorgos Tsourgiannis – Producer – Norway (Norviyia)
FRED meets Yorgos Tsourgiannis, producer of the film NORWAY (Norviyia) that had its world premiere at the 49th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
It is 1984 and Athens welcomes the arrival of vampire Zano, pleasure-seeker, gin swiller and admirer of beautiful women. To the rhythm of Eighties disco music he uncovers the mysteries of the city and, apparently by chance, ends up in a bar named Zardoz, where any drug is there for the taking and the DJ brings the crowd to the edge of oblivion. His encounter with Nordic adonis Peter and temptress Alice heralds the start of a great one-off friendship. Yet the adventure they ultimately experience together surpasses all Zano’s expectations. He gradually realises that what at first looked like one big party is in fact an elaborate plot designed solely for him. Zano is subsequently faced with a tough decision: should he renounce his ideals and serve evil, or preserve his dignity, thus risking his own life? Using elements of steampunk in its artistic stylisation, this imaginative film could be taken as both a bizarre game or a scathing commentary on the situation in contemporary Greek society.
Festival section: East of the West: Competition
Reporter: Matt Micucci