‘If I Go Will They Miss Me’ joins Thessaloniki competition: the film and the field
Walter Thompson-Hernández’s Sundance debut is among 10 films reported for the festival’s International Competition, which begins in November.
Walter Thompson-Hernández’s If I Go Will They Miss Me is among 10 films selected for the 2026 Thessaloniki Film Festival’s International Competition, Deadline reported on October 19. The festival in Thessaloniki, Greece, runs November 5–15, putting the film in a field judged for the event’s feature-film awards.
The 91-minute U.S. drama debuted at Sundance earlier this year and was released theatrically by James Shani’s Rich Spirit, according to Deadline. Danielle Brooks, J. Alphonse Nicholson and Bodhi Dell star in a story about a boy who sees ghostly figures of other boys in his neighborhood while grappling with his father’s distance.
What is Thessaloniki’s International Competition?
The festival describes the International Competition as a section for first or second feature-length fiction films from around the world. It is one of four competition sections at the 67th Thessaloniki International Film Festival. Deadline’s newly reported lineup places Thompson-Hernández’s film in that section; the festival’s earlier description establishes how the competition works.
Deadline named Gaia Furrer, artistic director of Giornate degli Autori, alongside writer and filmmaker Achilleas Kyriakidis and producer Jack Tarling as the International Competition jury. The Golden Alexander best-feature award carries €10,000, while the Silver Alexander for direction carries €5,000. The jury will also award best actor and best actress prizes and may give screenplay or artistic-achievement awards.
Which films are in the Thessaloniki lineup?
The other nine titles in Deadline’s International Competition list span European, Brazilian and Greek productions. They include Brave New Love by Maria Bäck, Les Indes by Pauline Julier and Nicolas Chapoulier, Stand Up by Mari Sanders, and The Incomer by Louis Paxton.
The field also includes The Riverbank by Enock Carvalho and Matheus Farias, Too Many Beasts by Sarah Arnold, A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra by Jacqueline Lentzou, A Whole Person Almost by Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis, and Titanic Ocean by Konstantina Kotzamani. Deadline lists Thompson-Hernández’s film as the sole U.S. production in the 10-film field.
The selection gives If I Go Will They Miss Me another festival appearance after its Sundance debut and theatrical release. The Thessaloniki festival is scheduled to run for 11 days, from November 5 through November 15; the competition jury’s awards will be decided during the event.
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Sources and context
- Thessaloniki Sets 2026 International CompetitionDeadline
- TIFF67: Call for Immersive/XR projectsThessaloniki Film Festival
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.