Kalamata Creative Documentary Centre-Laughing in Afghanistan

The Kalamata Creative Documentary Centre, with particular pleasure, invites its friends to the screening of the multi-award-winning documentary "Laughing in Afghanistan" by Anneta Papathanasiou on Monday, July 29th at 9:30 p.m., in the welcoming space of the Doc Café (on the pedestrian street of 6, Koutsomitopoulou str., Kalamata). The screening will take place in the presence of the director.

The film presents the story of a small young Afghan who wants to change the world with pantomime and humour. Karim Asir, the Afghan Charlie Chaplin, among bombs and disasters, performs with the only weapon being laughter. On August 15th, 2021, the Taliban invaded Kabul and threatened Karim with death. A difficult decision seems inevitable.

The adventure of the film

Karim Asir, trying to save himself after many difficulties and with the constant efforts of director Annetas Papathanasiou and producer Fotini Economopoulos, managed to come to Greece. It was an adventure of great suspense and twists and turns that lasted 70 days with a thankfully happy ending. Karim continues to fight for his art. He creates black and white silent videos where, using the figure of Charlie Chaplin as a model, he tells us his life in his own comical way and presents us with the general situation that prevails in Afghanistan and the world. Frequently, laughter has been condemned throughout the centuries, and in various religions, it is considered a threat and must be defeated.

Through his art, Karim fights for change and tries to give his compatriots a message of support.

The film has received rave reviews from the international and Greek press. Allan Berg Nielsen and Tue Steen Müller, film critics for Filmkommentaren.dk, praise the film for its "magic and funny episodes", while Leda Galanou (Flix) calls it "a feat that requires courage". Yiannis Zoumboulakis (To Vima) points out the film's ability to cause "real pain in the soul". At the same time, Christos Mitsis (Athinorama) describes it as "a humanistic cine-chronicle that is not afraid to 'get its hands dirty'". Stratos Kersanidis praises Papathanasiou's "empathetic look" and her "intelligent addition to laughing at monotheistic religions".

The screening of the documentary "Laughing in Afghanistan" is a unique opportunity for Kalamata's public to learn the story of Karim Asir and reflect on the power of laughter as a tool of resistance and change.

Cast

Screenplay - Director: Anneta Papathanasiou

Director of Photography: Dimitris Kordelas

Editing: Chronis Theocharis

Music: Maria Christina Krithara

Sound: Alexandros Sakellariou

Mixing: Kostas Varibopiotis

Color: Manos Hamilakis

Research / Script Consultant: Ioanna Bratsiakou

Friendly participation of the actors in order of appearance: Kostas Zekos, Kyriaki Gaspari, Savvas Paschalidis, Giorgos Fratzeskakis, Stathis Lagadas, Christina Konstantinidou, Taher Ghafor, Hossain Amiri, Sakina Hashimi.

Sets - Costumes: Savvas Paschalidis

Make-up: Katerina Kavadatu

Production Organization: Lili Triantafyllakou

Producers: Mikis Modiano, Fotini Economopoulou

Production: TopCut-Modiano

Co-production: Aljazeera Documentary Channel, ERT SA

With the support of YKK

Duration: 90'