“I’d like to think that people can respect everyone else on our planet"

The "Focus on Ability" Film Festival is disability short film competition and this year has received entries from 26 countries in 2019, including Australia. Greek Australian director Con Constantinou participates with the film "Mission to Marz". Con Constantinou talks to SBS Greek.

Greek Australian director Con Constantinou (R) talks about "Mission to Marz" short film. here with the film's protagonist Marios Filintatzis. Source: Supplied: Marco Torresi

For the 11th consecutive year, the "Focus on Ability" Short Film Festival asked filmmakers to tell stories of people with disabilities for the world to view. 

Many first-time filmmakers participate and one of them is Greek Australian director Con Constantinou. 

Melbourne-based Constantinou participates with the film "Mission to Marz", a 5-minute long documentary he made for the disability short film competition. 

WATCH THE FILM HERE: 

"The friend I interviewed is also of Greek heritage," Constantinou told SBS Greek. it is about Mario Filintatzis, a 35-year-old man who was born with spina bifida, which occurs when the tissue surrounding the developing spinal cord of a foetus doesn't close properly.

Greek Australian Marios Filintatzis, the protagonist of "Mission to Marz" short film. Source: Supplied: Marco Torresi

In the film, Mario states that he would like to think that people can respect everyone else on our planet."

What equality can do, is to bring people together for almost a perfect world", he says. 

Mario talks on the film about his "rock", his wife Katherine: Without her, I don’t know where I would have been”, Mario says. 

He is referring to his mother, Maria:“I’ll do anything for her. She has always slept next to me just to make sure that I could get through the hard times”.

Greek Australian director Con Constantinou. Source: Supplied: Marco Torresi

Mario’s family migrated to Australia in 1971, in Melbourne’s inner suburb of Abbottsford.

In 1994 when Mario was at grade 5, he got asked to audition for a children’s television show and to play a character who was in a wheelchair. 

He has already travelled in the UK, in Germany, in Japan, and in New Zealand and his goal now is to travel to Canada.

Previous years films have been both educational and inspirational and have been viewed in 168 countries across the world and voted on by over 700,000 people.

In 2018, SBS has screened ten of the films and additional screenings were held in Los Angeles, New York, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Auckland, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Greek Australian Marios Filintatzis, in "Mission to Marz" short film. Source: Supplied: Marco Torresi

Press Play on the main photo to listen the podcast (in Greek)