The House of Cain

Colour, 35mm
Greece, 2000, 78 min
Section: Documentary Films in Competition

Synopsis

This documentary by Greek director Christos Karakepelis is an essay about crime and punishment – about people with the mark of Cain. Men and women convicted of murder describe the feelings and motives which lead them to their crimes. And those who work supervising the house of Cain are also given a chance to speak. In this highly stylised documentary the director himself has created a certain reality through his selection of shots and by shooting images he himself has arranged. Karakepelis is less concerned with the concrete story of convicted individuals than with contemplating human nature, its incomprehensibility, and the fine line between innocence and the possibility that we, too, might bear the mark of Cain.

About the director

Christos Karakepelis (b. 1962, Serres) graduated in sociology from Panteion University in Athens and then in direction from the film school in Stavrakou. He has shot two short films and many commercials and has written scripts for television documentaries, some of which he has also directed. The House of Cain is his first film documentary. The film has won numerous awards, including the Audience Prize at the International Festival of Documentary films in Munich, an award for the best German film and the FIPRESCI award at the Salonika IFF.