Haris Alexiou takes part in Dimitris Bavellas’s documentary “Dourgouti Town”, in cinemas from 26/9/2024.
Dourgouti: “The old name for part of the area now called Neos Kosmos, on the south side of Athens, two kilometres from the Acropolis. Its exact boundaries are hard to make out and remain a matter of debate.”
Synopsis:
An Estate Agent looking to invest wanders through the Athens district of Neos Kosmos, formerly known as Dourgouti. Through his eyes, the past, the present and the uncertain future of this working-class neighbourhood are revealed. A desert island beside the Acropolis that silently records the modern history of the city.
About the film:
Through a journey in space and time, the documentary “Dourgouti Town” leads viewers into the backstreets of Neos Kosmos, two kilometres from the tourist area of the Acropolis.
The historical, social and political portrait of the neighbourhood unfolds through archive material, its depiction in cinema and literature, and interviews with former and current residents. Haris Alexiou, Yannis “Bach” Spiropoulos, Giorgos Dedes and other figures, from public life and beyond, talk about life in the neighbourhood from the 1930s to the present day.
Dourgouti comes alive through Nikos Koundouros’s “Magiki Poli” (“Magic City”), the pages of Henry Miller’s “The Colossus of Maroussi” and re-enactments of iconic scenes filmed there. Landmark events that scarred the area, such as the Nazi round-up (“Bloko”) of 9 August 1944, come to the fore. Accounts of serious and sometimes tragic incidents unfold with an ease that springs both from the reconciliation of those who speak about them on camera and from the film’s approach to its subject.
The documentary invites viewers to follow the story of the neighbourhood through the 20th century and its transformation from shanty town into a “gentrified” tourist destination. Despite the inevitable changes that erode its identity, Dourgouti remains a utopia, a desert island in the centre of Athens that records the “living” history of the city over the last 100 years.
Director’s Note:
“The film is a love letter to Dourgouti as I came to know it through the stories of my father, Nikos Bavellas. And to Neos Kosmos as I experienced it in my childhood and teenage years, before we moved to Nea Smyrni.”
Running time: 88’
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_WkmN-Mtls
Featuring:Haris Alexiou, Yannis “Bach” Spiropoulos, Giorgos Dedes, Nikos Bavellas, Meletis Zacharakis, Iosif Kassesian, Takis Bourmas, Anna Kouroupou, Tasos Markarian and other iconic personalities from the wider area and beyond.
Stathis Kokkoris plays the Estate Agent.
Director: Dimitris Bavellas | Screenplay: Dimitris Bavellas, Takis Katsambanis
Research: Dimitris Bavellas, Takis Katsambanis, Meletis Zacharakis
Producers: Gina Petropoulou, Dimitris Semitekolo, Dimitris Bavellas
Executive Producer: Nikos Moutselos | Production: Vox Documentaries, ERT S.A., Dyo Triantapente | Director of Photography: Yannis Fotou | Editing: Chronis Theocharis, Nikos Kallipolitis, Giorgos Georgopoulos | Music: Agis Papapanagiotou | Sound Recording: Christos Andreadakis, Dimitris Papadakis | Sets – Costumes: Maria Karathanou
Sound Design: Kostas Chrisogelos | Sound Mixing: Yannis Skandamis | Graphic Designer & Visual Effects Artist: Dimitris Semitekolo | Animation: Giorgos Filaktos
