GOETHEKINO: "Sisi & I"

Join us for a captivating series of screenings and discussions that delve into the complexities of identity, belonging, and personal freedom. Featuring three thought-provoking films, this series promises to spark meaningful conversations and reflections. The series concludes with the screening of Sisi & I, which will be followed by a discussion with Olga Kourelou, film academic, and Nayia T. Karacosta, performer and educator.

Sisi & I (Si)
Dark comedy, Drama // 2023 // Frauke Finsterwalder // 132 minutes

Sisi has reached the second half of her life. Countess Irma, who had applied to be her lady-in-waiting, met her in an aristocratic women's community in Greece, a whole universe away from the strict etiquette of the Austro-Hungarian court. Sisi lives a life of absolute freedom, in which neither her children nor her husband, Emperor Franz Joseph, play a role. The only important thing is that no one is bored and that the Empress herself sets the rules of the game. Irma is fascinated by the charismatic Sisi and her modern ideas. But the outside world is infiltrating the shielded world to break Sisi. And as much as Irma and Sisi fight back, in the end there is only one fateful path left that will bind the two women together forever.

"Sisi & I" is a German drama film that premiered in 2023. The story explores themes of freedom, loyalty, and the complexities of female friendship.

Directed by: Frauke Finsterwalder
Screenplay: Frauke Finsterwalder, Christian Kracht
Producer: Franz Novotny, Alexander Glehr
Music: Benedikt Schiefer
Cinematography: Thomas W. Kiennast
Film editing: Andreas Menn
Cast: Susanne Wolff, Sandra Hüller, Tom Rhys Harries, Sophie Rois, Stefan Kurt

Awards (selection):
- Berlin International Film Festival (2023): Nominated for the Golden Bear
- German Film Awards (2024): Nominated for Best Feature Film, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress (Sandra Hüller)

OLGA KOURELOU holds PhD in Film Studies from King’s College London. Having held teaching positions at King’s College London and Sussex University, she is now Research Fellow at the University of Nicosia and an independent film curator. She served as a member of the Cyprus Cinema Advisory Committee and has now been appointed to the Subcommittee for Script Evaluation.
Olga’s research interests are in star studies, gender, race, and European cinema, with a particular focus on Greek-language film. She has contributed book chapters and articles to publications including New Cinemas: Journal of Contemporary Film, Journal of Greek Media and Culture and Celebrity Studies Journal.

NAYIA T. KARACOSTA is an interdisciplinary performance artist. Graduated from the School of Drama, Aristotle University (master’s). Nayia works with creative accessibility and Documentary Theatre on issues related to care and self-determination. She designs and facilitates experiential workshops for groups of all identities since 2013, turning the material produced into performative texts. As an actor & performer she has participated in shows, performances, films and TV series in Greece and Cyprus. So far she has written 6 plays. She is co-founder of Koullou Makka, the first theatre-movement group with disabled and non-disabled people in Cyprus. She is co-founder of the theatre group Intra Portas and co-creator of the educational toy series Makers will make STEAM toys.

//Wednesday 25 June 2025, 7p.m.//
Goethe-Institut Zypern,
21 Markos Drakos av.
1102 Nicosia

Free admission
Film in original dialoue with English subtitles. Discussion in English.

More information: www.goethe.de/cyprus

Photo © The Match Factory GmbH, Photo: Bernd Spauke

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• This month, 28th May, 07:00 pm, GOETHEKINO: "Precious Ivie" in Nicosia

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