Cyprus cinephiles have one more reason to look forward to this month’s events as a brand new festival launches. From August 28 to 31, the first edition of the Larnaca Film Festival will bring a series of outdoor free screenings at various locations across the coastal city.

Organised by the Larnaca Film Club and supported by the Municipality of Larnaca, the Deputy Ministry of Culture, Larnaka2030 and the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus, the screenings will bring world and Cypriot films to the spotlight.

The film nights will kick off at 8.30pm, suitable for audiences aged 16 and over. Each screening will be followed by a short discussion. Launching the festival is the Italian film There’s Still Tomorrow (C’è ancora domani), screened at the Artists’ Park on August 28. The film is set in 1940s Italy, chronicling the story of a poor woman working tirelessly to raise her three children, while enduring constant abuse and humiliation from her husband. The black-and-white period film balances drama and humour, surprising audiences with its unexpected ending.

On the following evening, My Brother’s Orchestra (En Fanfare) will be shown in the Municipal Gardens, following the story of two brothers separated by fate and reunited through music. It blends humour, music and emotion in a story that raises important questions about identity and destiny.

The Cypriot documentary Skammata by Danae Stylianou will be screened at the courtyard of the Larnaca Archaeological Museum on August 30, weaving together archival excavation footage with powerful personal testimonies.

Skammata highlights significant moments in Cypriot archaeology before and after the tragic events of 1974. Cypriot and foreign archaeologists, along with former staff of the antiquities department, delve into personal memories, explore the collective trauma of war and reflect on the impacts of the coup and Turkish invasion on Cypriot archaeology. A short discussion will follow the screening, with the director present.

The festival will conclude on August 31 at Zouhouri Square with short films by Cypriot filmmakers. The films to be screened are Amalgamation, directed by Sylvia Nikolaidou and Nicolas Iordanou, 74, directed by Charalambos Margaritis, Anna, directed by Spyros Charalambous, Underground, directed by Yiannis Christoforou, The Hunt, directed by Sholeh Zahraei and Kamil Saldun and The Woman with the Parrots, directed by Michalis Kalopaidis.

1st Larnaca Film Festival

There’s Still Tomorrow (C’è ancora domani). August 28. Artists’ Park. My Brother’s Orchestra (En Fanfare). August 29. Larnaca Municipal Gardens. Skammata. August 30. Larnaca Archaeological Museum. Cypriot short films. August 31. Zouhouri Square. Free. With subtitles. https://larnakacinema.com/