# Cyprus Submits First-Ever Oscar Hopeful 'Hold Onto Me' Myrsini Aristidou’s debut feature explores a complex father-daughter bond through a personal lens. - **Source:** [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com) - **Published:** 2026-11-07 - **Topic:** [entertainment](https://brifing.si/c/entertainment) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/15c43635-f637-45a8-8ddf-5edddb3b9eb8 ## A Historic Cinematic Milestone The film Hold Onto Me has officially become the first-ever international feature film submission from Cyprus for the Academy Awards. This milestone follows the project's successful premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, where it secured the World Cinema Dramatic Audience Award, marking a significant breakthrough for the nation’s growing independent film industry. ## Narrative of Fragile Bonds The story follows 11-year-old Iris as she attempts to reconnect with her estranged father, Aris, a petty criminal who returns for a funeral. What begins as a stubborn pursuit of a relationship evolves into a fragile bond, complicated by Aris’s dark past and the skepticism of Iris’s mother and older brother. ## Personal Creative Inspiration Writer-director Myrsini Aristidou drew heavily from her own life experiences to craft this narrative. Having grown up with an absent father, she explores the themes of forgiveness and acceptance that she personally navigated during her teenage years. The film serves as the final installment of a thematic triptych regarding father-daughter relationships. ## Casting and Chemistry Dynamics The film features newcomer Maria Petrova alongside Christos Passalis, known for his role in Dogtooth. Aristidou intentionally chose not to hold extensive rehearsals, allowing the actors to remain strangers during the initial shoot. This decision mirrored the characters' own lack of shared history, resulting in a palpable and authentic on-screen chemistry. ## Production and Collaborative Effort Hold Onto Me is a co-production between Cyprus, Denmark, and Greece. The technical team included cinematographer Lasse Ulvedal Tolbøll, with editing handled by Jenna Mangulad and the director herself. The project was produced by Aristidou and Monica Nicolaidou, with executive support from Thomas J. Mangan IV and Mark Hollinger, ensuring a cross-border professional collaboration. ## Festival Circuit and Reception Following its Sundance success, the film is currently screening at the 30th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in Estonia. It is featured within the Just Film youth and children's event, showcasing its broad appeal across different demographics. Sales for the film are being managed by the international agency Cercamon to reach global audiences. ## Structural Narrative Philosophy Aristidou focused on maintaining a rigorous narrative structure, ensuring that every scene moves the story forward. By avoiding static character development, she aimed to create a dynamic experience that challenges societal expectations of family. She emphasizes that while family members are expected to love each other, they are often essentially strangers. ## Future Creative Directions While Aristidou considers her father-daughter triptych complete, she remains focused on exploring narratives about strangers forming connections. She is currently developing a crime and spy thriller for television while reviewing scripts sent by her U.S. agents. She remains open to directing projects written by others as she continues her career. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/hold-onto-me-cyprus-first-oscar-entry-father-daughter-film-1236747471/ — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._