Michael Cacoyannis

Michael Cacoyannis
Born Michalis Kakoyiannis
(1921-06-11)11 June 1921
Limassol, Cyprus
Died 25 July 2011(2011-07-25) (aged 90)
Athens, Greece
Other names Michael Yannis
Occupation Film director
Years active 1954–1999
Website Michael Cacoyannis Foundation

Michael Cacoyannis (Greek: Μιχάλης Κακογιάννης, Michalis Kakogiannis; 11 June 1921  25 July 2011)[1] was a Greek Cypriot filmmaker, best known for his 1964 film Zorba the Greek. He directed the 1983 Broadway revival of the musical based on the film. Much of his work was rooted in classical texts, especially those of the Greek tragedian Euripides. He was nominated for an Academy Award five times, a record for any Cypriot film artist. He received Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film nominations for Zorba the Greek, and two nominations in the Foreign Language Film category for Electra and Iphigenia.

Life

Cacoyannis was born in 1921 in Limassol, Cyprus. His father, Sir Panayotis Loizou Cacoyannis, had been knighted in 1936 by the United Kingdom government for public services in Cyprus.[2][3]

In 1939, he was sent by his father to London to become a lawyer. He graduated from law school and joined the BBC World Service, soon taking charge of its new Cyprus Service. His deputy was Beba Clerides, sister of the RAF fighter pilot and future President of Cyprus, Glafkos Clerides.[4] However, after producing Greek-language programs for the BBC World Service during World War II,[5] he ended up at the Old Vic school, and enjoyed a brief stage career there under the name Michael Yannis before he began working on films. After having trouble finding a directing job in the British film industry, Cacoyannis moved to Greece, and in 1953 he made his first film, Windfall in Athens.[5]

He was offered the chance to direct Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando in the film Reflections in a Golden Eye, but he declined. Between 1959 and 1967, he was in a relationship with Yael Dayan, a progressive Israeli politician and author.[6] Cacoyannis translated some of Shakespeare's plays Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus and Hamlet into Greek, and Euripides' play The Bacchae into English.

Michael Cacoyannis died on 25 July 2011 in Athens, aged 90.

Awards and nominations

Cannes Film Festival

Berlin International Film Festival

Academy Award (Oscar)

Golden Globe

British Academy Award (BAFTA)

New York Film Critics

David di Donatello Award

Thessaloniki Film Festival

Moscow Film Festival

Edinburgh Film Festival

Montreal World Film Festival

Jerusalem Film Festival

Cairo International Film Festival

Filmography

Bibliography

References

  1. Paul Vitello (25 July 2011). "Michael Cacoyannis, Director of 'Zorba the Greek,' Dies at 90". The New York Times.
  2. National Archives, Colonial Office Honours List, Birthday 1936: List by country of honours and names; Retrieved 13 April 2013
  3. Supplement to London Gazette, 23 June 1936; retrieved 13 April 1936.
  4. Cacoyannis obituary, The Independent, 27 July 2011; accessed 6 December 2014.
  5. 1 2 Erickson, Hal (2006). Allmovie Biography
  6. In conversation with Yael Dayan
  7. 1 2 3 "Festival de Cannes: Electra". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 22 February 2009.
  8. "IMDB.com: Awards for Our Last Spring". imdb.com. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
  9. "The 35th Academy Awards (1963) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 1 November 2011.
  10. "The 50th Academy Awards (1978) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 16 June 2012.

Further reading


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