Story
Epiphany The Film
A self-proclaimed celebration of Greek culture, Epiphany takes a deep-dive look at one family’s journey from its heartbreaking flight from war-torn Cyprus to the struggles of two grown brothers trying to make a living in the dying sea sponge industry. Told through the perspective of Luka, a young woman trying to find her way in a world with people she doesn’t always understand, Epiphany is a character-driven story of a fractured family and how they lean on their Greek heritage to find their way back to one another.
Left as a baby by her father (Theo), Luka was raised by her Aunt Maria and Uncle Peter in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The story unfolds following the death of Luka’s aunt, leaving Peter reeling from grief and resentment and Luka searching to connect with the father she hardly knows while he is navigating a new relationship with a woman, Cari, who may have the will and heart to save them all. Just when they start to try to find their way back to each other, a bitter figure from their past threatens to take it all away, again.
Tarpon Springs
Tucked in a quieter corner of the bustling Tampa Bay metro region, this city of about 25,000 spreads a subtle magic that transports visitors to other times, other places.
It blends the moods of Victorian-era Florida, small-town America and – most of all – the vibrant character of its Greek heritage.
Greek immigrants built Tarpon Springs’ signature sponge industry, turning a remote village into what was called “the sponge capital of the world.” For a time sponges, retrieved from Gulf of Mexico depths by intrepid divers in full suits, outstripped citrus products as Florida’s main export.
The Hellenic influence remains strong today. According to census figures, more than one in 10 residents claim Greek descent, giving Tarpon Springs a higher percentage of Greek-Americans than any other American city. More than seven percent report that they speak Greek in their homes.
From Jon Wilson’s ‘An Inside Look at Tarpon Spring’s History’.
The Epiphany & The Cross
On the sixth of January, Orthodox Christians celebrate Epiphany, the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. The word Epiphany, meaning “the manifestation of God to the world,” is used because this is the first time the world witnessed the Holy Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In Luke 3:21-22 we read, “When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”
Each year, as part of the Orthodox Christian celebration of Jesus’s baptism in the Jordan river, a blessing of waters is conducted in the church, and also at bodies of water.
The largest such celebration in America is at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Tarpon Springs, Florida. With this blessing of the waters comes an associated tradition, the tossing of a cross into the water to be retrieved by divers, most often youth from the parish. It is this beautiful moment that is captured in Epiphany.
Host the Film at a theater near you
Want to schedule a screening of Epiphany in your church or local theater? Please fill out the following to help us share the movie with you and your community.
Screening Schedule
SOLD OUT
Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas
Artsquest Center
101 Founders Way
Bethlehem, PA 18015
Directors Q&A to follow
Tickets: www.steelstacks.org/event/9495/epiphany/
Roxy Theater Northampton
2004 Main Street
Northampton, PA
Directors Q&A to follow
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/roxy-theater-screening-of-epiphany-tickets-89674253105?aff=ebdssbeac