ATHENS – The Apaches of Athens (1930), the first Greek talking picture, is traveling to France to be presented on Friday, April 1 in the “Toute la mémoire du monde” festival of the French Film Archive, where an original copy – considered lost for decades – was found a few years ago.

The film’s participation in the French festival is made possible by a collaboration between the Greek National Opera (GNO) and the Greek Film Archive.

GNO performers Elena Kelessidi (soprano), Dimitris Paskoglou (tenor), and Frixos Mortzos (piano) will participate at the film screening, performing the film score recomposed for small ensembles by the Hellenic Music Center.

Through an exclusive grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), the Greek Film Archive undertook the crucial tasks of restoring and digitizing the film into 4K, creating a 35mm copy, and recomposing the accompanying music.

The film’s first global presentation took place two years ago at GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), and was received very positively by the audience.

The Apaches of Athens by Dimitris Gaziadis, with music by Nikos Hadjiapostolou, is based on the operetta of the same title by Nikos Hadjiapostolou and Giannis Prineas (1921), and splendidly records some of Athens’ most significant landmarks and surroundings while capturing everyday life in the 1930s in the areas of Plaka, Psyrri, the Agora, Thissio, Gazi, Haftia, Syntagma Square, Omonia, Stadiou and Panepistimiou streets, and even the Tatoi Palace.

For more information on the screening at the “Toute la mémoire du monde” festival, click here.

Source: snf.org