Back to Thermopyles
https://vimeo.com/218554102 It was a pleasure to return to Thermopyles after my initial scout, this time for four days of shooting. In 2016, when there was a mad rush to the northern border as it was closing, Giorgos Palamiotis, a journalist, managed to set up...
May 17, 18, 19, 20 Thermopyles impressions by Bill
As moving as our first day’s shoot was at Tavros, it was just a foreshadowing of the amazing time we spent in Thermopyles, our first camp visit. Thermopyles is outside the city of Lamia, several hours north of Athens. It was well known as a hot spring resort, but had...
A few more personal reflections
For me this journey began back in February of 2017, when I was down in LA with my wife, visiting my in-laws. Bill and I have known each other for a very long time, since long before either of us had our now-fully-grown children. When I pass through LA, it's a normal...
May 16th, 1st shoot at 2nd Elementary School in Tavro
Tavros is a working-class neighborhood of Athens that is home to many immigrants from different countries for the past twenty years. It was a natural choice for a school immersion program for refugee children living in the nearby Eleona camp. The program runs every...
May 15 Scouting and meeting
We prepped today for our first day of shooting tomorrow, which will be in Athens. We met with Katerina Poutou, a woman who founded the NGO Arsis that does excellent work with refugees and has a passionate and very capable young staff. We hope to film some of their...
May 15- The Journey Begins
At the beginning of February I got a phone call from my friend Bill Megalos in Los Angeles, asking me if I would like to make a documentary with him, about the refugees in Greece. I've known Bill since 1989, when I worked as his assistant for four years. We've stayed...
May 14 Hit the ground running
Michel and I arrived Saturday night/Sunday morning (May 13-14) and Zaphiri made two long trips to the airport to pick us up, going to a wedding party in between. We worked hard on Sunday laying out our schedule and Zaphiri related to us all the remarkable contacts he...