Koraly Dimitriadis’s poetry film, Yiayia mou (my grandmother), currently streaming on SBS for Australian audiences, has been shortlisted for the prestigious Woollahra Digital Literary Awards in the poetry section. The public will be allowed to vote for the People’s Choice Award until tomorrow, November 22.
The film, which depicts Dimitradis’ Cypriot grandmother’s heartbreak of having to send her daughters to Australia to be married, has been screened at various international film festivals including locally at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, and was a finalist for the Multicultural Film Festival.
The film was supported by the Cypriot Ministry of Culture, the Department of Antiquities Cyprus, and the University of Sydney which manages the Paphos Theatre excavation project.
The Digital Literary awards recognise literature published digitally in the first instance. Because Koraly’s poem is self-published in her book, Just Give Me The Pills – which recently won best book of narrative poetry at American Book Fest – its first official publication was via SBS, which allowed her to be considered for the prize.
“I’m thrilled,” Dimitriadis says. “As a self-published poet, it’s been hard getting recognition for poetry despite being a bestselling poet in Australia.
“I very rarely these days submit my poetry to journals or prizes – I gave up. The establishment’s perceptions on what constitutes poetry is narrow. But my ability to act, perform and make films of my poetry has provided new avenues of recognition, and that’s really rewarding, for myself and obviously for my grandmother’s story, as her story is the story of so many women who suffered under colonialism and patriarchy in Cyprus.”
Dimitriadis, who recently launched her debut short story collection, The Mother Must Die, with Puncher and Wattmann, has also been invited to take part at the Addi Road Writers Festival in Marrickville on November 23. The Writers Festival, has the theme of ‘Cost of Living,’ and Dimitriadis will speak on a panel at 2:30pm with Walkley Award winning journalist Malcolm Knox, and Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Newcastle Steven Threadgold.
Addi Road Writers’ Festival 2024 Event Details
- Saturday, November 23, 11am – 6pm
- Addison Road Community Centre, 142 Addison Road, Marrickville
- Cost: $25 online /$30 on the day / $10 students and unemployed
- More information: https://addiroad.org.au/writers-festival/
All proceeds go to Addi Road’s food relief programs and community activities.
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