The Best European Film Location Award 2022 has been won by Hiliadou Beach, located on the Aegean side of Evia. Renowned for its wild beauty, white sands and turquoise sea, the legendary beach saw off stiff competition from equally stunning locations in Croatia, Switzerland, Germany, and the UK.
Hiliadou Beach provided much of the cinematic backdrop for the shooting of the awarding-winning film, “Triangle of Sadness,” directed by Ruben Östlund. The satirical black comedy, which is in the running for three Oscars next month, including Best Film and Best Director, scooped the coveted Palme d’Or at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival last summer.
The nomination for this latest award, which comes from the European Network of Film Commission (EUFCN), was submitted in November last year by the Hellenic Film Commission, an active member of the EUFCN. As the list of nominees was whittled down to five finalists, the vote for Best Location was put to the public via the EUFCN’s pan-European online platform.
The winner was announced on Saturday at the European Film Market during the 73rd Berlin Film Festival.
This is the second time a Greek location has won the prestigious award, last reaching the finals in 2019 with the hit British television series, “The Durrells,” which was shot on Corfu. The award for Best European Film Location was first established by the EUFCN in 2017.
“The Triangle of Sadness,” which stars Charbli Dean (in her last film before her untimely death in August 2022), Harris Dickinson, and Woody Harrelson, was released last May to rave reviews, winning plaudits for its direction, slick scriptwriting, and spectacular scenery.
Greek production company, Heretic, co-founded by award-winning producers Giorgos Karnavas and Konstantinos Kontovrakis, was directly involved in the making of the film, which also included filming aboard the luxury yacht “Christina O,” formerly owned by the billionaire Greek shipping magnet, Aristotle Onassis.
Swedish director Ruben Östlund said of his experience filming in Greece: “The locations in Hiliadou are unique. I’m not exaggerating, the filming was fantastic. The crew was knowledgeable and willing, while the locals were friendly and accommodating.”
Swedish producer Eric Hemendorff was also enthusiastic: “When our collaboration with Heretic began, Giorgos Karnavas sent me the photographic material of the location manager Menelaos Mytilinaios, the best I had seen. I got excited. Hiliadou combined mountain and sea, it had the wild beauty we wanted. Reuben is selective with locations. If they didn’t do it for him, we wouldn’t be there.”
