Free open-air cinema returns to Kolymvari for two nights, August 18-19
The Municipality of Platanias will host two nights of free open-air cinema in Kolymvari, western Crete, on August 18 and 19, 2026, with screenings starting at 21:00 and entry open to the public on both evenings.
Called “Cinema Under the Stars,” the event takes place at the small theater of the Fisheries Museum in Kolymvari. It is organized by the Municipality of Platanias in collaboration with the Chania Film Festival, and forms part of the “Cultural Summer 2026 – 16th Festival GI-POLITISMOS-TOURISMOS,” co-organized with the Region of Crete with support from local associations. The Chania Film Festival is separately preparing for its 14th edition.
Tuesday, August 18 program
The first evening opens with the short film “If the Olive Tree Could Speak” (“An i Elia Miliouse”), a 12-minute production by the Chania Film Festival’s summer school dedicated to the monumental olive tree of Vouves and its ties to local history. It is followed by the main feature, Pantelis Voulgaris’s “The Brides” (“Oi Nyfes”), which follows a young woman’s 1922 voyage to America aboard a ship carrying women traveling to meet their future husbands.
Wednesday, August 19 program
The second evening begins with a student short film, “Chilia Kalos Orisate…” (“A Thousand Welcomes…”), a 14-minute production by students at Souda Gymnasium centered on the mantinada, a traditional Cretan rhyming couplet, and its continuing place in daily life. The feature that follows, “My Brother Hunts Dinosaurs” (“O Adelfos mou Kynigaei Dinosavrous”) by Stefano Cipani, tells a story about two brothers that touches on difference and acceptance.
Admission and location
Both screenings begin at 21:00 at the Fisheries Museum theater in Kolymvari, and organizers said admission is free on both nights, with no ticket required. For readers looking for more things to do this month, the site’s events in Crete listings cover other seasonal happenings around the island.
