The Greek actress stars in a short film by the director who made her debut at the Director’s Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival, a short film called “Free Eliza”, about a woman born without the ability to smile. Watch this exclusive clip.
Shiboliththe directorial debut of writer and director Alexandra Mathieu (Summer place), she found her female role in the Greek actress Mary Mina (Summer placeTV series Ageliki), who is best known for playing the role of the High Priestess during the Olympic torch lighting ceremony since 2024.
The drama is one of this year’s projects in Focus CoPro at Cannes, which selects early-stage debut films from filmmakers who are selected in the Cannes Film Festival’s main shorts competition section and the shorts in the Directors’ Fortnight, as well as from other filmmakers scouted throughout the year.
record for Shibolith It reads: “A surrogate mother joins a couple expecting her child on vacation. As a love triangle quietly forms, she faces the emotional cost of surrogacy and the realization that her job doesn’t always end with birth.”
On Focus CoPro, Matthew shares about the film: “The story takes place in a place that seems to have defeated death; or so its people believe. For as long as I can remember, my existential anxiety around the subject of death has been a constant shadow. That’s why I created a playground where I could ask: If eternal life were possible, would it actually make life better? Or would it reveal everything we think we know about life?”
Shibolith It comes from Maria Drandaki’s Greek production company, Homemade Films, with Cypriot support from the Deputy Ministry of Culture of Cyprus. The project is in the financing and filming stage, and filming is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2027 in Cyprus and Greece.
Mathieu will be making the world premiere of her new short film Free Eliza (Notes on anatomical deficiency) On Thursday, May 20, in Director’s Week.
The short film is about a woman who was born without the ability to smile. Eliza, a hotel worker, refuses to change herself “even if a world dominated by toxic positivity requires her to conform,” according to the film’s synopsis.
Homemade Films is an associate producer Free Eliza And the main producer of this year’s film Un Certain Regard Titanic oceandirected by Konstantina Kotzamani.
THR An exclusive clip from… Free ElizaWritten and directed by Matthew. Gregoria Methenetti plays the titular role of Eliza. So, everyone, get ready for a staff photo shoot! But how can you take a photo if you can’t smile? And get ready to mention dolphins and, yes, Pamela Anderson.
Watch the exclusive clip from Free Eliza here.
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