Cypriot feature film 'Motherwitch', the third fiction film by Emmy-winning director Minos Papas, will be screened at the Rotterdam International Film Festival (IFFR) 2026 the Deputy Ministry of Culture has announced.
The Culture Ministry's press release notes that the film Motherwitch is produced by Caretta Films, as a co-production of Cyprus - USA - North Macedonia.
It was shot entirely in Cyprus, in authentic locations, with the support of the Deputy Ministry of Culture, as well as the Film Agency of North Macedonia.
The film's plot sees Eleni, a painter, trying to resurrect her dead children, but instead unleashing a horde of Kalikantzari – Cypriot folklore creatures that appear during the Twelve Days of Christmas – upon her village. Only by becoming a good mother to a talented, but abused boy can she bring natural order to the world again.
“Motherwitch is my love letter to Cyprus, its folklore, language and history,” Papas explains. “It is a fairy tale about parenthood, mourning, and how we attempt to overcome grief and loss. The film paints a magical story of creativity vs anger, while exploring the fragile creative child within us all.”
(Source: CNA)
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