I, the Beast: Short Film Award Winner at the International Epidaurus Film Festival
Journalist, author, and director Despina Sotiropoulou has won the Best Short Fiction Film Cosmocinema Award at the 3rd International Epidaurus Film Festival, held under the umbrella of the International London Film Festival, for her short film I, the Beast.
The film explores the obsessions and paranoia created during the Covid-19 lockdown, the overwhelming human need for communication, and the conflict between the mind and the desires of the flesh. Through themes of fear, isolation, morality, and psychological entrapment, the story examines how confinement can awaken hidden instincts and darker aspects of human nature.
This year, due to technical reasons, the festival took place at Greece’s first film school — the Lykourgos Stavrakos Film School, founded in 1950, from which the director herself graduated.
This marks the second consecutive year that Despina Sotiropoulou has received recognition at the festival. Last year, she earned the Best Acting Code Documentary Award for her documentary The Daughters of Silence, focusing on gender-based violence.
A Story About Isolation, Desire, and Human Nature
The short film centers on the emotional and psychological effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the social isolation imposed during lockdown. It follows the increasingly disturbing behavior that develops between two friends as loneliness and confinement begin to erode personal boundaries and moral restraints.
As human contact becomes limited, suppressed thoughts and desires emerge without hesitation or ethical concern. Modern forms of communication attempt to replace the power of physical touch, leading to emotional manipulation, sexual compulsions, and subtle forms of psychological violence.
The male protagonist, through sexist and morally abusive behavior, psychologically violates his female friend over the phone, using verbal and mental coercion to force her into witnessing his acts. Meanwhile, overwhelmed by fear, isolation, and the emotional impact of the pandemic, she becomes vulnerable to his manipulation. During this process, however, her own hidden “beasts” — instincts and desires previously unknown even to herself — begin to awaken.
In the film’s climax, the balance of power and exploitation between the two characters dramatically shifts.
The film’s central motto —
“When people are locked away, the beasts awaken.”
— is reflected through themes of attack, defense, self-protection, self-gratification, and the ongoing struggle between morality and immorality. Yet despite the darkness portrayed, the need for touch, connection, and human embrace ultimately remains at the heart of society.
Cast & Production
The film stars acclaimed actors:
Iro Moukiou
Tasos Sotirakis
Production Credits
Cinematography: Antonis Gasparinatos
Music: Valerio Matola
Poster & Art Design: Vangelis Evangelίου
Original Title: Christianna Chalkiopoulou
The film was produced during the summer of 2024 with the generous sponsorship of the Smile Kiosk store chain.
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