12th Cyprus International film festival to be held in
Paphos By Bejay Browne
The Cyprus International Film
Festival (CYIFF) has chosen Paphos to host the prestigious
competition in June. They have also launched a new category
this year, the Aphrodite Cinematic Award, which will
highlight women in film in Cyprus, and submissions are now
being accepted from established and new film makers from all
over the world. The annual festival, now in its
twelfth year, will hold free film screenings in Paphos from
June 14 – 24 at the University of Neapolis amphitheatre, as
well as in the renovated Attikon cinema on June 18, 19 and
20, in the parallel programme of Pafos2017. Festival
Director Petra Terzi, told the Paphos Post that she felt it
was important to support women in film and in particular,
those connected with Cyprus, and noted that Paphos as
the Cultural Capital of Europe, attaches ‘great glamour and
shine to the festival’. “CYIFF 2017 is launching a
new category: “Women filming in Cyprus” where a female
filmmaker will win the “Aphrodite Cinematic Award”.
The aim is to explore the point of view of both female
professionals and new directors, reflecting aspects of
everyday life in Cyprus,” said Terzi. This category
has no restriction on year of production, length, or style
of film, and can include shorts, features, and
documentaries. The festival also has a wide programme of
related events which create an important meeting place for
both Cypriots and foreign filmmakers, said Terzi.
The “Golden Aphrodite” prize is being judged by a
distinguished panel of experts in the international film
industry, including the legendary, Bill Butler. (Jaws,
Rocky) This is the second time that the festival has
taken place entirely in Paphos, previously it was held in
Nicosia. Last year the programme included more than
100 short and feature films of recent production.
The Cyprus International Film Festival is also inviting
volunteers to join the team. For further information
or to volunteer: www.cyiff.cineartfestival.eu
Paphos to get another desalination unit
By Bejay Browne A tender
process will get underway in the summer for the construction
of a new desalination plant in Paphos, according to the
Water Development Department (WDD). The construction
of a desalination unit with a daily capacity of 15,000 cubic
metres has been given the go ahead by the government and
will be constructed in Kouklia at the same location where a
mobile desalination unit was installed in 2010, which is now
being dismantled. The WDD, announced that based on
studies, that if drought conditions are again experienced in
the next couple of years, there will be a risk of water cuts
in the summer of 2018 as well as huge cutbacks in irrigation
supply. Paphos farmers held a protest demanding that
the existing unit, which was built in 2008 and cost the
government around €20m, be reinstated instead of a new one
being built, as it will take a minimum of three years for
the new unit to be constructed and operational. The
desalination unit was hardly ever used as Paphos’ water
needs were covered by supply from Asprokremmos dam, but the
contract meant that the government had to purchase water at
€1.21 per cubic metre and that the company would be
compensated for the time the unit was inactive. When the
contract expired, the state was unable to purchase the
privately owned facility as the governments’ state legal
services said that it was not permitted.
Paphos looks to increase wedding market
By Bejay Browne As the
busy wedding season starts, towns in the Paphos region are
looking to further increase this lucrative form of income in
an area that is fast becoming the number one choice for
destination weddings on the island. Particular
attention is being paid to Polis Chrysochous which is
dragging behind other Paphos municipalities in the numbers
of civil weddings it conducts, despite being home to some of
the island’s most stunning countryside and coastal views.
According to the recently elected mayor of Polis,
Giotis Papachristofi, the municipality only hosted 40 civil
weddings last year, the majority of which were for British
couples. In contrast, out of the 8,000 civil weddings taking
place in Cyprus last year.
Papachristofi said that the Polis
municipality is currently working with local tourist
officials to promote wedding tourism in the area, but “more
needs to be done”. Nasos Hadjigeorgiou, the head of
the Paphos regional board of tourism, said that Polis, in
particular, is an untapped market, and that it will provide
an upgraded wedding service in the near future. Aphrodite
and Adonis are being used in promotion efforts, which legend
tells have strong connections to the area.
Papachristofi said that wedding tourism was a very important
source of income for the municipality and that the new
council was determined to increase the number of civil
marriages taking place. “Our municipality has areas
with such special beauty, where one could celebrate a
wedding, such as St Andronicus Park (opposite the town
hall), the Baths of Aphrodite, and the port of Latchi.”
Geroskipou municipality held 870 civil weddings last year,
according to wedding officer Marina Polyviou. “Most
of these couples were British. Most book through travel
agents and wedding planners, although some of them do so
direct,” she said. Increasing numbers of Cypriot
couples are also choosing civil weddings every year, as they
prefer celebrations with “fewer people and not thousands of
guests”. Peyia municipality holds around 500 to 550
weddings per year, and expects a substantial increase this
year, according to councillor Linda Leblanc. During high
season, 10 to 12 weddings can be held in Peyia a day. Two
wedding clerks undertake all of the necessary administration
and also officiate at the ceremonies. According to
Hadjigeorgiou, British couples choosing the district of
Paphos still make up the largest numbers but all four
municipalities in the area were increasing their efforts to
boost numbers both from Britain and elsewhere. “Our
slogan is ‘Live your dream at the birthplace of the goddess
of love’, Paphos is a stress free wedding destination,” he
said. Letters needed for art
installation in Paphos By Bejay
Browne A Paphos based artist has issued an open call
for old or new handwritten letters which will be used as
part of a public art installation. She needs hundreds more
to reach her one thousand or so target. Visual
artist, Miriam Mc Connon, said that people wishing to
participate in the ‘The Voice of Ink’ project must send
their letters to her immediately, as the installation, which
will remain in place in the foyer of Almyra hotel in Paphos,
as part of their celebrations for Pafos2017, will open to
the public on May 28. So far, Mc Connon has
collected hundreds from all sorts of people, from all over
the world, written in many different languages. The
idea focuses on an indoor installation that deals with the
concept of immigration and displacement and sees her team up
with another Paphos artist, Marianna Constanti. Mc
Connon said she will create a ‘classic’ shaped house
structure, measuring 3x3x4m using thousands of letters which
she collected from immigrants in countries all around the
world. “The installation allows us to contemplate
the life of immigrants. Recently, immigration has had such
devastating consequences for many. I wanted to express a
sense of unification, as opposed to separation and will
bring hundreds of immigrant’s stories together under one
roof,” she said. In addition, the project will
highlight the demise of the written word, which has almost
been wiped out by technology. Original letters are required
and will not be returned, so the artists suggests
participants take a photo copy as a memento. She has already
created a working small scale model of the installation.
Constanti, meanwhile, will create an accompanying mixed
media installation including a display piece exhibiting
various objects related to the process of writing a letter
including, wax and ink holders. The installations
will remain in Paphos for a month, after which they will
travel to Ireland to be displayed in a public space there,
before possibly being shown at other venues. Letters
can be posted to: Miriam Mc Connon, 6a Prevezis Street,
Paphos 8028, Cyprus. Contact: (m) 99554829 or
miriammcconnonart@gmail.com Guilty
verdict for Paphos sewerage board officials
By Bejay Browne Five high
ranking officials embroiled in the Paphos Sewerage Board
(SAPA) corruption scandal were found guilty by the court.
The five include, MP Fidias Sarikas, former councillors
Giorgos Michaelides, Efstathios Efstathiou and Vasos
Vasiliou, as well as sitting councillor Giorgos Shailis.
Disgraced former Paphos mayor Savvas Vergas and
suspended SAPA director Eftychios Malekkides pleaded guilty
in the same case and are currently serving a six year prison
term. The charges relate to bribes, money
laundering, abuse of power, and conspiracy. Sarikas
was accused of receiving bribes from Awatech, a German
company bidding for SAPA contracts. Shailis was
accused of conspiring with Vergas – who is currently serving
time in prison on corruption charges. Vergas had
also been a defendant but turned state witness in the trial.
Malekides is also serving a prison term in connection
with the SAPA after confessing along with Vergas to abuse of
power and receiving bribes from contractors in return for
SAPA contracts. The five have been ordered to remain
in custody until sentencing, when defence lawyers will argue
for leniency.
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