Greece will host the 39th European Film Awards, a milestone for the country’s cinematic heritage. For the first time, the European Film Awards will take place in Southeastern Europe, in Athens, on 16 January 2027, at the Greek National Opera, at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center.
Throughout 2026 and up to 2027, a wide-ranging and carefully designed programme of film events, initiatives, workshops, screenings and creative dialogues will unfold across the country, as well as at major international festivals abroad, building momentum ahead of the 39th European Film Awards ceremony.
The programme has been designed in collaboration with EKKOMED (Hellenic Film and Audiovisual Center), which coordinates all activities with key cultural partners.The European Film Awards ceremony will be broadcast live across Europe in collaboration with the Greek public broadcaster ERT.
Leonidas Christopoulos, CEO of EKKOMED, stated:
“The events across Greece are carried out in close collaboration with the European Film Academy, reflecting a shared commitment to celebrating European cinema, artistic excellence and cross-border collaboration.”
Matthijs Wouter Knol, CEO and Director of the European Film Academy, stated:
“Athens and Greece have long been a source of inspiration for European culture and storytelling. Bringing the European Film Awards to Southeastern Europe for the first time is something we consider both significant and long overdue. The annual programme we are developing together with our Greek partners is not simply a countdown to the ceremony — it is an invitation for filmmakers, audiences and cultural communities across Europe to connect, exchange ideas and celebrate what makes European cinema such a vital and vibrant art form.”
Launch: Celebrating the countdown to the EFA Awards Athens 2027 at the Berlinale
The official announcement of the event took place earlier this year at the Berlinale, during a highly successful reception at the Embassy of Greece in Berlin, organised by EKKOMED in collaboration with the European Film Academy and the European Film Awards Committee.
The news was received with great enthusiasm by filmmakers, producers, institutional representatives and key industry professionals.
The first event on Greek soil: Documentary Think Tank at the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival.
The Documentary Think Tank, held last week at the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival and organised in collaboration with the Thessaloniki Film Festival, was the first event related to the Athens 2027 Awards to take place in Greece — the first of the annual programme. The Think Tank brought together voices from across the European documentary landscape, aiming to contribute to shaping the vision and priorities of the Documentary Department of the European Film Academy, which is set to launch in 2027.
A one-year extensive programme across Greece and internationally
In the months leading up to the Awards, EKKOMED will organise a series of activities connected to the 39th European Film Awards 2027 at international festivals in which it participates, including the Cannes and Venice festivals. Meanwhile, a rich programme of initiatives, events, workshops and screenings will take place throughout Greece:
Leading international film festivals based in Greece, such as the Thessaloniki Film Festival (November 2026, Thessaloniki), the Drama International Short Film Festival (April & September 2026, Drama), the Animasyros International Animation Festival (September 2026, Syros and Athens) and the Olympia International Film Festival for Children and Young People (December 2026, Pyrgos and Amaliada), will act as ambassadors of the event across the country in the months leading up to the main ceremony in January.
Leading Athens-based organisations, such as the Greek Film Archive, the Athens International Film Festival – Premiere Nights, the Athens Film Office, the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation, the Panorama of European Cinema Festival, the Athens International Children’s Film Festival, among others, join forces to present different facets of European cinema.
A special programme curated by the Hellenic Film Academy
The Hellenic Film Academy curates a special programme, within the framework of a dedicated Memorandum of Cooperation and financial support from EKKOMED, highlighting the complex and fascinating relationship between Greek and European cinema.
These activities will offer audiences across the country the opportunity to engage with filmmakers, attend screenings, participate in discussions and celebrate the creativity and diversity of European cinema.
See below the programme of activities taking place across the country, as well as the full programme of the Hellenic Film Academy.
- 15.04.2026 – 30.04.2026
“DISFF Residency”
Residency Programme for short film scriptwriting
Where: City of Drama, Region of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace
In collaboration with the Drama International Short Film Festival
- 15.05.2026 – 15.06.2026
Award-winning European and Greek Films Available Free on ERTFLIX for One Month
Selected fiction and documentary films awarded by the European and the Hellenic Film Academy will be available for free streaming for one month via the ERTFLIX platform.
The films, presented under a dedicated platform category titled “AND THE WINNER IS…”, come from directors across different countries, offering a broad spectrum that highlights the diversity of European film production.
At the same time, ERTecho podcasts will broadcast interviews with Greek filmmakers nominated for the Iris Awards 2026.
Where: Online, geographically restricted to Greece
Curated by the Hellenic Film Academy
- 01.06 – 31.08.2026
Screenings of recent European films with the presence of their creators, within the culturally rich setting of Athens’ open-air cinemas during the summer period.
Where: Various open-air cinemas, Athens
In collaboration with the Athens International Film Festival – Premiere Nights
- 17.06.2026
Within the framework of the Iris Awards 2026 at the Onassis Foundation Stegi, two distinguished members of the European Film Academy are invited to Athens and participate in the awards ceremony.
At the same time, they take part in a one-day workshop titled Iris Mentors with nominees in the Best First-Time Director category, focusing on co-production prospects in Europe today.
Where: Onassis Foundation Stegi, Athens
Curated by the Hellenic Film Academy
- 06.09.2026 – 12.09.2026
Hosting of the European Film Academy Short Film Network Meeting at the 49th Drama International Short Film Festival
Where: City of Drama, Region of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace
In collaboration with the Drama International Short Film Festival
- 15.09.2026 – 15.10.2026
THE MONTH OF GREEK CINEMA
A month of screenings dedicated to Greek cinema.
Screenings of 40 films (35 fiction and 5 documentaries) will be organised into five thematic sections (8 films per section), curated by five curators who will select the films and actively participate in their presentation.
Screenings will take the form of event screenings with the presence of key contributors (directors, actors, cinematographers, producers, etc.), while audiences will have the opportunity to engage with them through Q&A discussions.
Where: Various venues across Greece
Curated by the Hellenic Film Academy
- 21.09.2026 – 27.09.2026
Screenings of animation films awarded at the European Film Awards over the past five years, accompanied by masterclasses with producers and directors on trends and developments in animation.
Where: Syros and Athens
In collaboration with the Animasyros International Animation Festival
- 13, 14, 15, 21, 22.11.2026
Five days of workshops and masterclasses with Greek and European directors, producers, cinematographers, sound designers and other audiovisual professionals.
In this expanded version of the Hellenic Film Academy’s successful initiative Film Factory, European creators awarded with European Film Awards and Greek creators awarded with Iris 2026 will participate.
Where: Athens Conservatoire, Athens
Curated by the Hellenic Film Academy
- 28.11.2026 – 05.12.2026
Screenings of films awarded at the European Film Academy Young Audience Awards over the past five years, accompanied by masterclasses on trends in European children’s and youth cinema.
Where: Pyrgos & Amaliada (Peloponnese) and Athens In collaboration with the Olympia International Film Festival for Children and Young People and the Athens International Children’s Film Festival.
See Press Release here