At the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, Greek director Christos Nikou — best known for "Apples" and "Fingernails" — served as mentor to the 10 participants of Future Frames, a programme for emerging European directors, with Variety observing the discussion. Nikou used the session to stress the importance of filmmakers finding their own voice, warning that too many young directors instead chase what film funds and festivals appear to want. His remarks matter as a candid insider critique of how the European film-financing system can shape, and sometimes stifle, original work.

Nikou described himself as a self-taught cinephile who watches around three films a day and can identify a distinctive directorial voice within the first five to ten minutes. He recalled that "Apples", which opened the Horizons section at Venice in 2020 before screening at Toronto and Telluride, had been rejected by funds and workshops in several countries because they could not grasp its subtle tone, suggesting that making a short film first can help convey it. He also criticised aspiring directors who cite figures such as Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino yet pitch what he called dull "poverty porn", and named "The Truman Show" — alongside influences ranging from "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie" to "The Lovers on the Bridge" — as the film that inspired him to direct.