The scent of evergreen and fir washes over the mountains of Tirna in Northern Greece. The winter snow has washed away, revealing the lively forest that sits above the historic sleepy village. Some say bears live within the belly of the mountain, inside the dark caves that puncture the slopes.  

Argiro and Aneta are some of the last young people who live in the village of Tirna. What has stopped them from leaving? 

This is a story about young queer women in the forgotten rural villages of Greece. This project is extremely personal to Stergios and Krysianna, the co-directors and co-writers of Bear Cave (Arkoudotripa). We both have deep roots in mountain villages whose culture has shaped our childhood memories and family life. Here’s why we think this is an important story to tell: 

Queer - There is a lack of stories featuring the young queer people outside of cities in Greece, especially queer women. 

Teen - Both of us have dedicated a lot of our lives to working and teaching storytelling, filmmaking, and theater to teens - this is a demographic we care deeply about. We think it’s imperative that there are coming-of-age stories that reflect the realities of young people in Greece’s countryside. 

Rural - Shooting in the village of Tirna, we're hoping to involve the local community in the process, from our pre-production research to group scenes with the residents of the village. There has never been a film made in this magical location.

We need your help to make this film. We want to make this project into a 3-part mini-series with Arkoudotripa as the pilot/stand-alone short film. We are out to make a low budget pilot in Greece, where accessing funding for independent art projects is tough. We want to pay our talented crew and performers equitably. Your money is directly supporting the careers of young creatives, and giving voice to the rural, young, queer voices of Greece. 

Female-led creative team.  Our crew is mostly female, including the positions of director, producer, director of photography, and art director. We are all young creatives living in Athens, and passionate about telling stories.

Co-Writer/Co-Director

Krysianna Papadakis (she/her) is from Athens, Greece and has lived in the US and UK. She completed her undergraduate studies Social Studies with an emphasis on political theory and philosophy at Harvard University and a master’s degree in media, language, and performance in international politics at the University of Oxford. During these degrees, she also studied playwriting, comedy directing, and scenography and discovered a passion for writing and directing. She co-founded a theatre company in London and worked as a director and writer for theatre before pivoting to film. For years, she has mentored teenagers in creative writing and social sciences, helping them deconstruct issues, construct narratives and find their own voice. She’s passionate about using humor to shed light on social issues, and is drawn to stories about how people navigate their environments and how personal identity exists in the broader world. 

Co-Writer/Co-Director

Stergios Dinopoulos (he/him) grew up in Athens, Greece and studied Film & Video Production at Harvard University where he graduated magna cum laude. He is a director, cinematographer, and photographer and makes fictional films, dance videos, video installations, and documentaries. He has spent years teaching filmmaking and  storytelling to young adults including photography seminars for teenage refugees in Athens, art-making for young refugees in Lesvos, and documentary and activism workshops for young adults at Exile Films in Athens. His latest short film Bluebird was an official selection at the Athens International Film Festival and he is passionate about telling socially conscious and tender stories about love, family, and cultural memory. 

Director of Photography

Arsinoi Pilou (she/her) was born in Athens and raised in Corfu, Greece. She studied film and cinematography in the Fine Arts Department at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and in Escola Superior de Teatro e Cinema of Lisbon.  Her approach to the field of cinematography combines an artistic eye with technical insight. Since 2015 she has worked on a range of audiovisual productions, from feature films and shorts to music videos, documentaries, TV series and commercials. She's taken on a range of roles as a Director of Photography, camera operator, camera assistant, and electrician, working with productions of different sizes and varying workflows. She is eager to experiment with new ways of diving into the art of expression through the lens, especially within independent projects where the creative team works closely and explores their story freely.

Art Director / Producer

Marianthi Christodoulou (she/her) is an architect and designer based in Athens. She has studied architecture at University of Patras, with an Msc in Mediterranean Urban planning. She has worked as a set designer and creative director for various projects. Her passion about cinematography and theatre led her to meddle with architecture as the scenography of reality, exploring the boundaries between architecture, art and scenography.

Your contribution is going directly to support the people working on the film - from pre-production, shooting, and post-production a movie takes dozens of talented people to come to life. Everyone you are supporting is young and at the start of their careers. 

Cast and Crew Salaries - $5000

Equipment Rental - $800

Post-Production - $2000

Festival Submissions - $400

Food and Travel - $500