Tis the season…fabulous film festivals are opening all over the Bay Area. One of the true gems is San Francisco Greek Film Festival (SFGFF), America’s largest showcase for Greek cinema. The 23rd edition, March 14-21, 2026, presents eight days of in-person screenings at Delancey Screening Room and a robust program of online screenings. Yannis Economides’ urban drama “Broken Vein” opens the festival Saturday evening with actress Anastasia Chatziathanasiou in attendance, followed by Savvas Stavrou’s short “Nymph (or The Impossible Hope of Trying),” and an Opening Night Reception. Merissa Basta’s debut feature, “Life in a Beat,” closes the festival on Saturday with the tough emotional story of 20-year-old Lena who is fired from her supermarket job and simultaneously learns she is pregnant. Basta and her script co-writer, Dimitris Nakos, will attend. Following the screening of Dimitris Papathanasis’ short, “Dust to Dust,” the festival wraps with a Closing Reception.
The 33 film lineup includes an in-person program of eight narrative features and nine narrative shorts and an online program including all of the in person programming, plus an additional selection of documentary films, available only online. Most films are in Greek and all have English subtitles. Experiencing talent in attendance, talking about their work, is one of the great pleasures of attending a festival. This year, both opening and closing nights have guests in attendance. “Bearcave,” screening Thursday, and “Rooster, screening Friday, have their original music composers in attendance talking about the critical role of sound in film.
Dedicated to promoting the best film work by Greek and Cypriot filmmakers from around the world, SFGFF is run entirely by dedicated Greek-American volunteers who are passionate about film. This a very warm and welcoming festival with engaging films you will not see elsewhere, that cut to the core of contemporary Greek society. SFGFF is very popular with the Bay Area’s Greek community and it’s essential to purchase in person tickets in advance. Full program here: https://grfilm.com/2026-festival/
Opening Night: March 14, Yannis Economides’”Broken Vein” with Anastasia Chatziathanasiou in attendance | short film “Nymph” (or The Impossible Hope of Trying)” | Opening Night reception
Stavros Stavros’ short “Nikh” (or The Impossible Hope of Trying)” also screens. On the eve of the biggest show of her career, a young pop singer struggles with her sense of control over her art and her mind. But fate has other plans for her. (Greece, 2025, 15 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCZLJynNM9k&t=6s
Closing Night: March 21: 6 p.m. Amerissa Basta’s debut feature “Life in a Beat” with Amerissa Basta and co-writer Dimitris Nakos in attendance | short film “Dust to Dust” (Greece, 2025, 26 min) | Closing Reception.
Amerissa Basta’s debut feature “Life in a Beat” follows Lena (Elina Tsorbaci), a 20-year-old Athenian woman living at home who is desperate to escape her dysfunctional family life and strike out on her own. She hits a dramatic turning point when she is fired from her job at a local supermarket while simultaneously discovering she is pregnant. Hell-bent on bootstrapping herself out of her present situation, she learns that she cannot be fired while she is pregnant and is determined to use that to stay afloat, despite the immature people in her circle. (Amerissa Basta, Greece-Cyprus-Bulgaria-North Macedonia-Montenegro-France, 2025, 92 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XAbq71UnNA
Dimitris Papathanasis’ award-winning short “Dust to Dust” is a realistic satire criticizing greed and corruption within the funeral industry focusing on Kosmas, a Greek municipal cemetary employee (Dimitris Drosos) and a priest exploiting grief for profit. (Greece, 2025, 26 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxtET6jW4N8
The six remaining narrative feature/shorts parings include:
Sunday, March 15, 7 p.m.: “Don’t Laugh, They’ll See You,” (Nicholas Dimitropoulos, Greece, 2025, 105 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOM07qPHOEY Short film: “Prelude to a Supernova” (Christos Artemiou, Greece, 2025, 27 min) TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1117370198?fl=pl&fe=vl
Monday, March 16, 7 p.m.: “The Great Massacre of Alimos” (Athan Tom Sklavos, Greece, 2025 128 min) TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1102170756?fl=pl&fe=vl Short film: “Mavro Vouno” (Nikos Kokonas, Greece, 2025, 20 min) TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1105512747?fl=pl&fe=vl
Tuesday, March 17 , 7 p.m.: “Smaragda – I Got Thick Skin and I Can’t Jump” (Emilios Avraam, Greece, 2025, 99 min) TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1013309017?fl=pl&fe=vl Short Film “Unfair Roots” (Giorgos Logothetis, Greece, 2025, 25 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlbTRToE018&t=3s
Wednesday, March 18, 7 p.m.: “Our Wildest Days” Vasilis Kekators (Greece, 2025, 104 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcPvk-48_yk ; “La Première Image – I PROTI EIKONA” (Olia Verriopoulou, Greece, 2025, 25 min); https://vimeo.com/1099644884?fl=pl&fe=vl “Fouetté” (Dimitris Zouras, Greece, 2025, 15 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEcqyCoFB0Y&t=1s
Thursday, March 19, 7 p.m.: “Bearcave” (Greece, 2025, 127 min) Directors Stergios Dinopoulos, Krysianna Papadakis) with Music composer John Tournas in attendance. TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MChazgaMTec Short Film: “Gekas” (Dimitris Moutsiakas, Greece, 2025, 25 min) TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtxXy2fPP6Q&t=5s
Friday, March 20, 7 p.m.: “Rooster” (Tassos Gerakinis, Greece, 2025, 100 min) Director Tassos Gerakinis and original music composer Yiannis Plastiras in attendance. TRAILER: https://vimeo.com/1128434125?fl=pl&fe=vl Short Film: “FUIT,” (Dimitris Zouras, Greece, 2025, 15 min) TRAILER: : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiWt1JxYJ2U
Details:
The 23rd annual San Francisco Greek Film Festival is March 14-21, 2026 at Delancey Screening Room, 600 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, AND online for the United States and Canada.
Tickets: In Person: $20 per screening Monday-Friday / $65 opening or closing (includes reception after screening) / $230 weekly pass for all screenings. Online: $10 per narrative feature and $5 per short (less than one hour). For more information, visit: https://grfilm.com/2026-festival/#inpersonfilms and https://grfilm.com/2026-festival/#onlinefilms