ATHENS — When the prospect of fully restarting tourism seems remote and uncertain, what meaning does the “off season” have? What is “out of season” and what is “in season” during a period of profound disruption to the normal cadence of time?

The 8th annual Syros International Film Festival (SIFF) is adapting to the unusual conditions created by the pandemic, introducing a new program of events in Athens and Syros titled “Off Season.”

The events start on July 8 and will last until the end of the year, starting in Athens, at the Goethe Institut, before moving to Syros, the festival’s birthplace. One standout film selection is Room 666 (1982), a medium-length film by Wim Wenders which documents the meeting of some of Wenders’s colleagues and fellow directors, including Werner Herzog, Chantal Akerman, and Jean-Luc Godard, in his hotel room, discussing the future of cinema. Another event features a selection of films shot with Edison’s kinetoscope, scheduled for August 1 to coincide with the 120th anniversary of the second-ever film screening in Greece, which took place on Syros in 1900.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) has supported SIFF for six years.

Explore the detailed program here.