The Municipality of Aspropyrgos invites you on Wednesday, December 14th at 19:00, to the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Aspropyrgos 2022, to honor the award-winning work “Railway Memories” by Emilia Bouriti and its contributors, from the Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival “Beyond Borders.”
It is an evening celebrating Intangible Cultural Heritage, Participation, and Resilience, accompanied by screenings, songs, and delicacies representing the Arvanite and Pontic culture of Aspropyrgos.
The project stood out among 800 international entries, winning the 3rd prize / Bronze Phoenix in the mICRO section of the 7th Kastellorizo International Documentary Festival “Beyond Borders 2022” – where documentary meets History and Culture. The film is an audiovisual study on the concept of displacement as both individual and collective memory.
Wednesday, December 14, 2022, at 19:00
Cultural Center of the Municipality of Aspropyrgos
Following are photos and text from the official website of the Municipality of Aspropyrgos.
Initially, the Mayor of Aspropyrgos, Mr. Nikolaos Meletios, took the floor and congratulated the visual artist, Ms. Emilia Bouriti, emphasizing their creative collaboration that has been ongoing since 2016. He also congratulated the Pontic women of Aspropyrgos participating in the documentary, as well as the Arvanitissa women for their broader participation in the visual artist’s international program “Amoli.” He stressed the importance of this event, as once again Aspropyrgos, through its cultural actions and collaborations with local artists, highlights the multicultural culture of the city.
The Deputy Mayor of Social Protection, Education, Culture, and Youth, Ms. Sofia Mavridis, who significantly contributed to the realization of the award-winning documentary, thanked in turn both the visual artist and the broader Pontic and Arvanitic community, without whose collective memories the completion of the project would have been impossible.
Finally, the President of the Cultural Center, Ms. Georgia Pilichou, expressed her satisfaction with the award and pledged once again the steady and continuous support of the Cultural Center institution to all recipients for the production of high-quality cultural projects.
Subsequently, the visual artist, Ms. Emilia Bouriti, warmly thanked the Municipality of Aspropyrgos for their excellent long-term collaboration, as well as the contributors to the documentary. She referred to the creation of the documentary and the traumatic experience of uprooting from the Black Sea region (Euxine Pontus) of the families of the Pontic community of Aspropyrgos.
She particularly emphasized her cooperation with the communities of the city, highlighting that since 2016 works have also been carried out with the Arvanitic agricultural community, which have been internationally recognized, showcasing the significance of the city’s rural landscape. Concluding, she focused on the need for cultural meetings of the communities in order to highlight the culture of Aspropyrgos through diversity, culture, and solidarity.
The evening was accompanied by the screening of the documentary “Railway Memories,” followed by narrations and singing of characteristic songs of their culture, as well as carols, by members of the Pontic and Arvanitic communities collaborating with the visual artist.
Artistic participants included:
From the Pontic community: Sofia Mavridis, Claudia Masmanidou, Christina Sofianidou, Chrysoula Topalidi, Eleni Tsiripova, Eleni Maskalidu, and the musician Vassilis Semertzidis.
From the Arvanitic agricultural community participated: Katerina Ilia, Katina Neroutsou, Eleni Dara, Koula Liosi, Maria Kapsala, Mary Avraam, Maria Mylona, Kaiti Neroutsou, Fani Papada, Anna Tsokani, Sofia Kasaki, and the musician Tasos Fotiou.
Present at the event were:
The Mayor of Aspropyrgos, Mr. Nikolaos Meletios; the Deputy Minister of Justice, Mr. Georgios Kotsiras; the Secretary of the Parliament, Mr. Evangelos Liakos; the Deputy Mayors, Ms. Sofia Mavridis and Mr. Dimitrios Papadopoulos; the President of the Cultural Center, Ms. Georgia Pilichou; the President of KEDA, Mr. Anastasios Papadopoulos; the President of OAFNTH, Mr. Ioannis Katsaros; Municipal Councilors Mr. Ioannis Ilias, Alexandros Mylonas, Maria Liakou, Evangelos Mouzakas, Agisilaos Tsigos; the Vice President of OAFNTH, Mr. Antonios Konaxis; and the New Democracy party candidate, Mr. Andreas Tsokos.
Also present were the Director of the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Evanthia Papadatu; the Social Anthropologist of the Department of Intangible Cultural Heritage & Intercultural Affairs, Directorate of Modern Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, Ms. Maria Fakiola; the President of the Hellenic Foundation for Historical Studies (IDISME) and of the International Documentary Festival of Kastellorizo “Beyond Borders,” Mr. Panagiotis Poulakos; the Head of Development, Communication, and Social Media of the International Festival, Mr. Stefanos Velmachos Bonos; the Artistic Director of Eleusina 2023 – European Capital of Culture, Mr. Michail Marmarinos; the President of the Pan-Pontic Federation of Southern Greece and Islands, Mr. Georgios Varythymiades; the President of the Pontic Theater of Aspropyrgos, Mr. Dimitris Efstathiadis; the member of the Pontic Association of Aspropyrgos “The Akrites of Pontus,” Ms. Ioanna Sotiriadou; the member of the Pontic Association “Panagia Soumela,” Ms. Anna Papadopoulou; the President of the Agricultural Association of Aspropyrgos, Mr. Theodoros Petrogiannos; the President of the Hellenic-Romanian Association “Konstantinos and Eleni,” Ms. Marianna Kontourarou; the Professor of the Postgraduate Department of PAD at the Laboratory of Mild Forms of Energy and Environmental Protection, Mr. Panagiotis Ktenidis; and the Artillery Lieutenant Colonel, Mr. Epameinondas Bourantas.
