Beyond Borders, the international documentary festival held annually in Castellorizo, has  this year expanded its pitching lab titled “From an Idea to a Project.” The lab’s main objective is to offer aspiring emerging filmmakers of the region the opportunity to present a basic idea of theirs for a documentary to an experienced panel of producers and broadcasters working in the European documentary scene. In turn, each participant receives professional feedback in how to turn their idea into a valid project ready to be presented to the wider documentary community.

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For this edition, the honouring festival was Movies That Matter, the leading Dutch human rights film festival that is held annually in the Hague. The festival was represented in Beyond Borders by its artistic director Margje de Koning, who was also the moderator of the pitching sessions, and senior programmer Maarten Stoltz.

Among the 20 projects presented at the event, the Movies That Matter Award was given to award-winning filmmaker Alex Sussmann for his documentary project I Used to Be The Mayor. The project, which is currently in development, goes through an intimate portrait of the former mayor of Budapest and looks into recent Hungarian history and Hungarian society. It is not only about a person and a country shaken by a current government, but also about the human struggle of ageing, family affiliation and memory. The director will be invited to travel to the upcoming edition of the Movies That Matter festival that will run from 25 March to 3 April 2022.

Eleni Kavouki received a Special Mention for her historical documentary My Grandmother’s Sister. The story follows the journey of 89-year-old Artemis Bita, a Greek Civil War survivor, who was forced to fight against her will at the Greco-Albanian borders when she was only a teenager. There, she overcame a severe injury that led to her hospitalisation in Albania, and right after, she had to immigrate to the Soviet Union. After many years, Artemis manages to return home. Her story is a nostalgic unravelling of the idea of the homeland, an exploration of genealogical trauma, a constant reminder of survival. The director will be able to join the Movies that Matter Industry days online.