Greek filmmaker Alexis Alexiou is arriving at the Thessaloniki Intl. Film Festival with his third feature, "Sea of Glass." The film recently premiered out of competition at Edinburgh and is described by Alexiou as a "country gothic noir." A special screening is scheduled in Thessaloniki before a limited theatrical release across Greece on Nov. 12.
The drama is set during the off-season at a down-at-the-heels resort town on the island of Evia. The story follows Vangelio, a 65-year-old woman played by Evangelia Andreadaki, who is trapped in a routine of caring for her abusive, bedridden husband. After his sudden death, Vangelio makes a "reckless" decision to go on holiday to a shabby resort near Chalkida.
There, she meets Vicky, a tough-as-nails twentysomething played by newcomer Christiana Matelska Toka, who runs a family business and cares for her alcoholic father, played by Michalis Iatropoulos. When the father becomes violent one night, Vangelio intervenes to protect Vicky, leading to a confrontation and a subsequent flight for liberation.
Alexiou stated that the film was inspired by movies such as "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Cape Fear," and "Thelma & Louise." He noted that the project began with a treatment written by Afroditi Nikolaidou in a single day about "two women stuck in the middle of nowhere in a rundown seaside resort, who unexpectedly come together to confront their own past."
Alexiou explained that the story focuses on family relationships and dysfunctional parent-child dynamics. While Vicky deals with her father's abuse, Vangelio reflects on her regrets as a mother and how her silent suffering under her husband's violence impacted her grown sons. Alexiou noted that while "The Postman Always Rings Twice" features a "lonely hero that comes into town and upsets the balance of the smalltown community," he and Nikolaidou gave it a contemporary twist centered on "two women who are seeking companionship and solidarity."
Nikolaidou, who grew up in similar seaside resorts, described these locations as places of "brutality" where girls were historically locked up or constrained in taverns. She stated that these resorts "haven’t changed much since then" and that "Sea of Glass" bears the "memories and scars of this hibernating world."
Alexiou also highlighted the landscape of the filming location, which was once a swamp reclaimed by developers in the 1970s and '80s. He observed that nature is "starting to reclaim the area" and noted that "man is always fighting to tame nature, to shape the landscape. To claim it." He drew a parallel between this and the film's young heroine, whose defiant nature refuses to be tamed.
The film was produced by Tugo Tugo Prods. in co-production with Portokal (Bulgaria) and Bark Like a Cat Films (Cyprus), and in collaboration with Felony Film (Cyprus), Marni Films (Greece) and Cinnerent (Serbia). It features Nikos Georgakis, Thanos Tokakis, and Dimitris Tzoumakis, with cinematography by Simon Sarketzis.
The Thessaloniki Film Festival runs from Nov. 5 – 15.
