The Greek Film Archive continues its online screenings, with success. On Thursday 23 April (20:00), it will present its new programme, containing a representative selection of films from post-world war II cinema, for the first time to be screened online through our new digital theatre. Amongst these films are, The Ogre of Athens, The Magic City and The River by Nikos Koundouros. Six narrative fiction films and three documentaries will be screened in total.

These include some of the rare films from the Film Archive’s collection, that have not been screened often, but also other films that although, have been frequently showcased, do not cease to be, important milestones in the history of Greek cinema.

The process will be the same: each film will have its online premiere at a specific date and time in the page of each film, and will be available online for 72 hours. Once this time expires, the next film will commence.

 The selection of films, provides a representative sample of the historical period, of the development of Greek studios (Anzervos, Finos Film), in the early post-war period — the appearance of a first generation of directors/auteurs including the distinctive case of Nikos Koundouros; the appearance of the first female Greek director, Lila Kourkoulakou,  to participate in competition in Venice film festival; to the great ambassador of documentaries -who  had his apprentiship under Henry  Langlois in Cinematheque Francaise- Lambros Liaropoulos. From the time of the dictatorship and the Metapolitefsi (“regime change”), we present an important film by Yiorgos Stamboulopoulos, which faced significant problems with censorship yet was distinguished in foreign film festivals, and two documentaries by the important literary writer, director and great supporter of the Film Archive, Costas Vrettakos.

With this second cycle, the audience will get to know our Archive, even more, as well as our multidimensional activities (preservation, restoration, digitization and screening of films of Greek cinema). At the same time, through the website, members of the audience will be able to learn more details about these films.

Thus, after the completion of our tribute to silent and early sound cinema, with films that the Greek Film Archive had restored and digitised, a series of landmark post-war films of Greek cinema, will take their place — extending from the 40’s and reaching the years of the dictatorship, the metapolitefsi and the late 80’s.

Amongst these are six narrative fiction films that include some of the most well known films of Nikos Koundouros, but also important films  by Lila Kourkoulakou and Yiorgos Stamboulopoulos. The opening of the tribute will take place with the historic film Anna of Rhodes by Giannis Filippouand Michalis Gaziadis, which was restored by the Greek Film Archive — whilst three documentaries signed by Lambros Liaropoulos and Costas Vrettakos,will also be screened.

Start time 20:00

A friendly reminder that we have already uploaded the short film THE WHEEL (1964) by Thodoros Adamopoulos on our website, (will be available for the remainder of the month) — a walkabout-film in Athens, which we can especially enjoy today, in these difficult times of confinement. The film is about the adventures of a car wheel in Attica. The wheel unexpectedly falls off from the car and wanders around the city. Starring: Vaggelis Kazan, Christos Tsagas, Dimitris Papanikolaou.