Cyprus has for the first time entered a film for consideration in the Academy Awards’ Best International Feature category, selecting Myrsini Aristidou’s debut feature Hold Onto Me — a prizewinner at the Sundance Film Festival 2026 — as its official submission to the 99th Academy Awards.
Historic first for Cyprus
The decision marks a cultural milestone for the Mediterranean island, which has not previously participated in the Oscars’ long-running international feature race. The film premiered in Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic competition and won recognition from audiences there earlier this year.
"hold onto each other"
Aristidou described the selection as a sign of perseverance and international warmth. In a statement cited by the reporting, she reflected on the film’s themes of familial connection and resilience, and on the unlikely journey that brought the debut to global audiences.
About the film and filmmaker
Hold Onto Me follows a young girl, Iris, who comes back into contact with her estranged father, Aris, after travelling away from home, accompanied by her older friend Danae. The story centres on personal reconnection and the fragile bonds that hold people together in fractured times.
Aristidou is an emerging filmmaker with a record on the international festival circuit. Her earlier short films include Semele, which won a Special Jury Prize at the 2016 Berlin International Film Festival, and Aria, a project supported by Spike Lee that premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2017. She has been involved in industry development programmes such as the Cannes Cinéfondation Residence and the TIFF Talent Lab, and she won the Spiegel Lab’s Emerging Filmmaker Prize.
| Film | Notable festival recognition |
|---|---|
| Hold Onto Me | World Cinema Dramatic competition; Sundance audience recognition (2026) |
| Semele (short) | Special Jury Prize, Berlin (2016) |
| Aria (short) | Premiere, Venice Film Festival (2017); supported by Spike Lee |
Context and significance
National submissions to the Academy’s Best International Feature category are a signalling mechanism: they showcase national filmmaking to a global awards ecosystem that can boost a director’s profile, opening doors to distribution and further festival invitations. For a small country like Cyprus, the official entry represents not only recognition of one film but also an assertion of a developing national cinema on the world stage.
- Historic milestone: Cyprus’s first-ever submission to the Oscars’ Best International Feature category.
- Festival pedigree: Hold Onto Me premiered at Sundance and has received audience recognition there.
- Filmmaker background: Aristidou has previous festival awards and participation in major development programmes.
The international awards calendar imposes deadlines on national bodies. Countries had until 30 September 2026 to submit entries for the Best International Feature category for the 99th Academy Awards, making this selection part of a wider, time-bound process that brings dozens of national cinemas into competition each year.
For South African audiences and the local film sector, Cyprus’s move is a reminder of how festival success — particularly at high-profile events such as Sundance — can translate into national recognition and opportunities on the awards circuit. Filmmakers and cultural institutions here often view international festivals as a pathway to broader exposure, external financing and distribution arrangements.
As the Oscars process unfolds, the Cypriot submission will be reviewed alongside entries from many other countries. Whether Hold Onto Me will advance through the Academy’s shortlisting and nomination stages will depend on the film’s reception among Academy voters and the campaigning that follows — but for now the selection itself is a notable achievement for Aristidou and for Cyprus’s film community.
