Synopsis
The Green Line is a VR short film documenting areas of the UN Buffer Zone in Cyprus, some unseen by the public since 1963. The Green Line immerses viewers into one of the most restricted places on the planet, in an effort to raise international awareness for the current political situation in Cyprus, a nation divided since 1974.
The Green Line team was granted access into the Cyprus Buffer Zone in January 2016. Escorted by UN convoy, the team filmed what remains of the abandoned villages of Selemani, Varisheia, and the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.
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Creator’s Note
The Green Line is special to us for many reasons, not least of all because it is the culmination of what at times felt like an impossible journey.
This documentary began in 2014 amidst the re-opening of talks for the re-unification of Cyprus. Not knowing how to get positively involved, but wanting to, we decided that whatever form our contribution would take it would be centered on the UN Buffer Zone in Cyprus, the literal divider of the two sides of the island, as well as the most symbolic consequence of the ongoing conflict between Turkish-Cypriots and Greek-Cypriots. Our aim was to turn the Buffer Zone into a memorial of the catastrophic consequences of divisive politics. During the inevitable difficulties of once again re-unifying two deeply scarred ethnic groups under the same flag, we wanted the Buffer Zone to be both showcased and preserved for posterity, serving as a constant reminder of what the price would be of failing to continue towards a mission of peaceful co-existence.
The Green Line serves as a digital memorial, preserving parts of the UN Buffer Zone as they stand today in the most effective way possible: through a medium capable of reaching millions of viewers. One of the things that we feel is so special about The Green Line is its utilization of VR to its maximum potential. Through the use of VR, The Green Line grants total immersion into a space where human activity has been banned since 1974, allowing otherwise impossible glimpses of what has been lost and nearly forgotten, returning it to its original inhabitants, and introducing it to the world at large
Credits
DIRECTED BY: Ioannis Bekiaris & Alexis Mavros
PRODUCED BY: Stelios Aletraris, Ioannis Bekiaris, Stavros
Charalambous, Dimitrios Ikonomou, Alexis Mavros
WRITTEN & NARRATED BY: Dimitrios Ikonomou
ORIGINAL MUSIC: Evagoras Bekiaris & Manos Stratis
VR FX & EDITING: Polar Effect Studios
ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY: Kerim Belet
RUNNING TIME: 6 minutes 15 seconds
WORLD PREMIERE: CannesNEXT, May, 2018
CONTACT:
[email protected]
tel: +357 99 430 170
The University of Nicosia
The Green Line Project team would like to extend special thanks to the University of Nicosia, whose support has proven instrumental to the development and execution of this great project.
From the beginning, at the idea inception stage, UNIC embraced the initiative and provided practical guidance, equipment, as well as financial support over the years, without which we would not be where we are today. UNIC’s visionary team of people were by our side throughout the entire journey, assisting us at the VR shootings in the Green Line, during post-production, as well as with marketing and PR.
Today, they are still an integral part of our team and are planning with us the next stage of the Green Line Project.