A well-heeled lawyer is distraught. With his wife lying in a coma, each day begins in tears. But despite this sadness, he is not embittered. Actually, he seems to be happy. Is this happiness fuelled by the pity he receives from people – from his secretary to his relatives and neighbours? He’s grown accustomed to pity, addicted even. What a vexing dilemma he’d face were his wife ever to recover.
"It’s not something we like to admit, but as human beings, we revel in other people’s pity. It makes us feel important; like we are the centre of the universe. I believe there are two kinds of pity. One happens when you see a homeless person in the street, so you give him some money and you feel good about it. You – not him. The other kind is the one I decided to explore in the film. It’s about the pity we are trying to get from the others and how far we are willing to go in order to get it." (Babis Makridis)
Babis Makridis
Born in 1970, in the city of Kastoria, in northern Greece. Graduating in film direction from the Stavrakos Film School in Athens, he embarked on his cinematic career as director of commercials and videos. He earned an award for the short The Last Fakir, while his debut feature, L, was selected for the competition at Sundance. Pity is his second feature film.