IRIS BEST DOCUMENTARY AWARDS

Man, dreams and the sea. The combination of rare archival footage and modern underwater shots in Lefteris Charitos’s impressively humane documentary parallel the experience of free-diving with an inner-self journey through the world of Jacques Mayol, the Dolphin Man. — Dolphin Man draws us into the world of Jacques Mayol, capturing his compelling journey and immersing viewers into the sensory and transformative experience of free-diving. From the Mediterranean to Japan and from India to the Bahamas, we meet Mayol's closest friends and family to reveal the portrait of a man who reached the limits of the human body and mind, not just to break records but hoping to discover the deeper affinity between human beings and the sea. — Best Documentary | Hellenic Film Academy Awards | 2018

Stavros Psyllakis’s unforgettable documentary was the first ever documentary to be honored by the Greek Film Academy. It draws inspiration from a sad story, a remnant of the civil war, that turns it into a monument of benevolence through its heroes' memories. — In Crete, part of the Democratic army survived even after the Civil War had ended. These outlaw radicals, hid for about 14 years near Chania, trying to regroup the illegal organizations. In 1962, six of them escaped through Italy to Tashkent. The three that survived compose the main characters of the documentary. This story’s equally vibrant and ellusive "protagonists" and "unsung", beyond ideologies, embody something extremely important: a deep devotion to humans and their dignity. — Best Documentary | Hellenic Film Academy Awards | 2010 Best Film | Halkida Greek Documentary Festival | 2009 Audience Award | Nicosia Documentary Festival | 2009