The Way Elsewhere

The Way Elsewhere is a lyrical, genre-blurring portrait of contemporary Athens, told through the lives of three veteran taxi drivers who move through the city for more than just a living, as quiet dreamers navigating a landscape of resilience, memory, and longing.

Konstantinos — known on the street as “The Puma” — is approaching retirement after half a century behind the wheel and conscious of his legacy. Each morning, before the city wakes, he begins his shift with a private ritual under the Acropolis, in the company of an owl. Sunny, a Nigerian-Greek actor and family man, drifts between faith, fatigue, and a longing to return to artistic expression. Giorgos drives by day and sings in small clubs at night, chasing a moment of recognition on stage that he feels is still within reach.

The owl — an ancient Athenian symbol of wisdom and foresight — recurs not as metaphor but as a totemic presence that links the characters’ desires to the city’s deeper memory. Rather than illustrating Athens’ crises, the film dwells in their aftermath: in the textures of its streets, the fragility of its routines, and the resilience of those who continue to imagine lives of meaning and beauty despite uncertainty. As the characters look back on their lives, the film aims to give them agency and explores how they keep their dreams alive.