Cinema of Cyprus

The cinema of Cyprus^[a] came into existence much later than that of most other countries, with the 1960s generally being accepted as the industry's earliest notable history. The Cypriot film industry has historically suffered from slow growth due to the island's small population and a lack of interest from the general public who are preoccupied by the Cyprus problem, as well as its awkward geographical location at the crossroads of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and the Middle East.

Michael Cacoyannis became the most famous Cypriot filmmaker to date when he wrote, directed, edited, and produced Zorba the Greek (1964). Another filmmaker working at the same time was George Filis, who made the films Loves and Woes (1967),^[b] The Last Kiss (1970),^[c] Gregoris Afxentiou: A Hero With a Memoir (1973),^[d] This Is How Cyprus Was Betrayed (1974),^[e] and The Mega Document (1979).^[f] The only two films by Filis that are not political works about the Cyprus Emergency or the Turkish invasion are Loves and Woes, a documentary about traditional Cypriot dances and music, and The Last Kiss, a romantic drama.^[1]

Since 1989, Cypriot co-productions have been eligible for funding from the Council of Europe's Eurimages Fund. To date, four feature films on which a Cypriot was listed as an executive producer have received funding from Eurimages: Of Greece (scheduled for 1995 but unreleased),^[g] The Slaughter of the Rooster (1996),^[h] The Promise (1999),^[i] and The Road to Ithica (2000).^[j][2] There is also a government-backed initiative for filmmakers to apply for funding from the Invest in Cyprus scheme,^[3] which absorbed the former Filming in Cyprus scheme in 2024.^[4]

In 1994, Cypriot film production received a boost with the establishment of the island's Cinema Advisory Committee. By 2000, the annual amount set aside for filmmaking in the national budget was CYP£500,000 (approximately €850,000). Statistics showed that in 2011 the country hosted 30 cinema screens,^[5] produced three films (two fictional and one documentary),^[6] sold 870,000 tickets,^[7][8] and grossed €7.11 million at the box office.^[7] At the same time, its three biggest distributors were (in order) Four Stars Films, Odeon, and Feelgood.^[9] Marios Piperides' film Smuggling Hendrix (2018) received acclaim at that year's Tribeca Film Festival,^[10][11][12] while Tonia Mishiali's film Pause (2018) also received positive reviews.^[13]

Since around 2018, Cyprus has attempted to market itself as a filming location and branded itself "Olivewood",^[14][15][16] a portmanteau of "Olive" and "Hollywood".^[17] The Hollywood action film Jiu Jitsu (2020) starring Nicolas Cage was shot in Cyprus, which doubled for Myanmar, but was a critical and commercial failure; it also became embroiled in a controversy when the filmmakers promised to sue the second Anastasiades government for breach of contract due to the non-payment of the €8 million rebate outlined in their contract, resulting in the potential production of at least three more Hollywood films being moved elsewhere, which was estimated to have lost millions in expected revenue for the economy of Cyprus and took away many potential jobs for local film crew.^[18]

A few years after the setback caused by Jiu-Jitsu, American studio Jupiter Peak Productions came on board for Find Me Falling (2024), a romantic comedy starring Harry Connick Jr.^[19] Written, directed, and co-produced by Stelana Kliris, it became the first Hollywood film to be both set and filmed in Cyprus; upon its Netflix release, it also became the first film directed by a Cypriot to receive a worldwide Netflix premiere.^[20] It received mixed reviews.

Cyprus is home to production companies such as AMP Filmworks,^[21] Bark Like a Cat Films,^[22] Meraki Films,^[23] and Seahorse Films,^[24] as well as the Cypriot branch of Greek production company Green Olive Films.^[25] The Cyprus International Film Festival is also hosted each year.^[26]

• Michael Cacoyannis (1922–2011), Greek-Cypriot filmmaker
• Elias Demetriou, Greek-Cypriot filmmaker
• Yannis Economides (born 1967), Greek-Cypriot filmmaker
• Nicolas Economou (1953–1993), Greek-Cypriot composer
• Stelana Kliris, South African-born Greek-Cypriot filmmaker
• Peter Polycarpou (born 1957), English-Cypriot actor
• Derviş Zaim (born 1964), Turkish-Cypriot filmmaker

• Cinema of Greece
• Cinema of Turkey
• Culture of Cyprus
• Culture of Greece
• Culture of Turkey
• List of cinema of the world
• List of Cypriot films
• List of Greek actors
• List of Turkish actors
• World cinema

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