Vasilis Kekatos is a Greek film director and screenwriter.[1] He is most noted for his 2019 short film The Distance Between Us and the Sky, which was the winner of the Short Film Palme d'Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival.[2]

He previously directed the short films Retrograde, Zero Star Hotel and The Silence of the Dying Fish.

The Distance Between Us and the Sky, a gay-themed film, was also the winner of the Queer Palm for LGBTQ-related short films.[3] Kekatos dedicated his Palme d'Or win to the memory of his uncle, a gay man who emigrated from Greece to Australia in youth and whom Kekatos credited with having influenced his own attitudes toward homosexuality.[1]

In 2021, he entered production on Milky Way, a teen drama television series.[4] The series, centring on the tribulations facing a teenage girl who gets pregnant, premiered in 2023.[5] In the same year, his forthcoming feature film debut, Our Wildest Days, received production funding from Eurimages.[6]

In 2024, he was one of four industry figures whose selection for the Greek committee to select the country's submission to the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film was rescinded a few days after it was announced.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Greek director Vasilis Kekatos dedicates Palme d’Or win to his late uncle – a Greek Australian". Neos Kosmos, June 26, 2019.
  2. ^ "Greek Filmmaker Vasilis Kekatos Wins Short Film Palme d'Or at Cannes". Greek Reporter. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 2 July 2019.
  3. ^ Hunter Harris, "Cannes Jury Awards Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite". Vulture, 25, May 2019.
  4. ^ Christopher Vourlias, "Cannes Short Film Winner Vasilis Kekatos Set to Begin Shooting TV Series ‘Milky Way’". Variety, November 8, 2021.
  5. ^ Christopher Vourlias, "Fifth Season Takes Global Distribution Rights to Groundbreaking Greek Teen Drama ‘Milky Way’". Variety, November 1, 2023.
  6. ^ Ellie Calnan, "David Cronenberg’s ‘The Shrouds’ among €8.3m Eurimages funding recipients". Screen Daily, April 3, 2023.
  7. ^ Zac Ntim, "Greek Oscar Committee Chaos Prompts Filmmakers To Withdraw Entries". Deadline Hollywood, August 22, 2024.
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