Christoforos Papakaliatis

Last updated
Christoforos Papakaliatis
Born (1975-12-23) 23 December 1975 (age 49)
Heraklion, Greece
Occupation(s)Actor, director, screenwriter
Years active1993–present

Christoforos Papakaliatis [a] (born 23 December 1975) is a Greek actor, director and screenwriter.

Contents

Early life

Christoforos Papakaliatis was born in Heraklion on 23 December 1975, the son of Villy Malamis and Emmanuel Papakaliatis. His mother is Greek from South Africa. [1]

Career

Television

Papakaliatis began his career at the age of 16, playing numerous roles on successful TV shows broadcast on Mega, Greece's largest TV network at that time. At the age of 23, he began writing his own TV scripts. His first script Our Life Is a Path (Greek: Η ζωή μας μια βόλτα) aired on Mega and was well-received by critics and the public. The following year, he wrote and starred in the TV series Take Care of Me (Greek: Να με προσεχείς) and then wrote and starred in the TV movie Three Wishes.

Papakaliatis' TV drama Close Your Eyes  [ el ] (Κλείσε τα μάτια) was one of the highest rated TV series in Greece. He wrote and starred in the series, and also directed most of the second and third season episodes. The series featured a kiss between two men, which sparked a debate in Greece as it was the first time two male characters had kissed on television. Papakaliatis received a fine by the Greek National Council for Radio and Television, but this was later withdrawn by the Greek Council of State.

Maestro , a series written by and starring Papakaliatis, was broadcast on Mega in 2022. Later that year, Netflix bought the rights to stream the series worldwide, making it the first Greek series to be picked up by Netflix. [2]

Film

In 2006 Papakaliatis wrote, directed, and starred in the drama-thriller series Two Days Only (Δυο μέρες μόνο) and in 2009 he wrote, directed and starred in the TV series 4 (Τέσσερις). It was the same year that he got accepted as a member of the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (EMMY International). In 2012, he starred next to Catherine Deneuve and Sebastian Koch in the feature film God Loves Caviar directed by Iannis Smaragdis. What If... [3] (Greek: Αν) (2012) was his first feature film. He wrote and directed the film, and played the leading role of Demetris. The movie was a box office success in Greece for the 2012-2013 season, remaining in theaters for more than 4 months and making a $4.5M box office. What If was screened at numerous film festivals around the world, but never got international distribution. In 2013, it was qualified to run for a Golden Globe nomination as a foreign movie but never made it to the finals. In 2017, its script was sold in Turkey and a Turkish adaptation will be soon shot in Istanbul.[ needs update ]

In 2015, his second feature film Worlds Apart starring Academy Award winner J.K. Simmons had its official theatrical release in Greece. This love story was set in Athens between foreigners and Greeks and was played out against the tense backdrop of the combined incoming immigration wave and devastating economic crisis that Europe and especially Greece were then facing. The movie made a $5M box-office and was the second highest grossing film in the 2010s in Greece, notably surpassing the performance of blockbusters like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and James Bond film Skyfall . [4]

Worlds Apart had international distribution and was released in 25 countries. In January 2017, the movie was released theatrically in the US by Cinema Libre Studio, receiving positive reviews from the LA Times [5] and various other publications. In 2017 the movie was also released theatrically in Switzerland and Austria by Trigon Films.

Theatre

Filmography

Television

YearTitleRole(s)NotesRef.
1992 The Unacceptables videoclub employeeEpisode: "Sex, porn and videomovies"
1992-1993 The Guardians of Achaea VeniaminMain role (34 episodes)
Women10 episodes
Kostis PalamasChristakis Palamas6 episodes
1992-2001 Ten Little Mitsoi ChristopherMain role (32 episodes)
1993-1994 Anastasia Spyros13 episodes
1994 Anatomy of a crime AlkisEpisode: "Closed circuit"
Anatomy of a crime Episode: "Poveri fiori"
Decide!Episode: "I'm your mirror"
1996-1997 Dolce Vita Charis12 episodes
Colored SunAlexandrosMain role (18 episodes)
1998-1999 A Touch of soul RigasMain role (30 episodes)
1999-2000 All our life was a walk Michalis PloumisLead role (24 episodes); also writer
2000-2001 Take care of me AlexandrosLead role (24 episodes); also writer
2003-2004 Close your eyes Philippos RallisLead role (31 episodes); also writer and director
2005-2006 Two days left Aris VrettosLead role (18 episodes); also writer and director
2009-2010 4 Petros XenopoulosLead role (26 episodes); also writer and director
2019One WorldHimself (host)Documentary; also writer and director
2022-2024 Maestro in Blue Orestis EmmanouelLead role (19 episodes); also writer and director

Film

YearTitleRoleNotesRef.
1997 Hercules (1997 film) Herculesvoice role in greek
2002Three WishesLefterisTV movie; also writer
2012 God Loves Caviar Grigori Potemkin
2012 What If... Dimitrisalso writer and director
2015 Worlds Apart Giorgosalso writer, director and producer
2017 The Lego Batman Movie Batmanvoice role

Personal life

Papakaliatis currently resides between Los Angeles and Greece.

Notes

  1. Greek: Χριστόφορος Παπακαλιάτης, Greek pronunciation: [xriˈstoforospapakaˈʎatis]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Marais</span> French actor, writer, director and sculptor (1913–1998)

Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais, known professionally as Jean Marais, was a French actor, film director, theatre director, painter, sculptor, visual artist, writer and photographer. He performed in over 100 films and was the lover, muse and friend of acclaimed director Jean Cocteau. In 1996, he was awarded the French Legion of Honor for his contributions to French cinema.

Nickelodeon Movies Inc. is an American film production company based in Los Angeles, California and owned by Paramount Global. Originally founded in 1995, it serves as both the film production arm of the American children's network Nickelodeon and the family film distribution label of Paramount Pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Diamantopoulos</span> Canadian actor (born 1975)

Christopher Diamantopoulos is a Canadian actor. He played Russ Hanneman in the HBO series Silicon Valley and starred in the film The Three Stooges, and the TV series Good Girls Revolt. He voiced Mickey Mouse in the eponymous television series, The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse and the short film Once Upon a Studio; for the former, he received two Emmy Award nominations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lakis Lazopoulos</span> Greek playwright, actor and songwriter

Apostolos (Lakis) Lazopoulos is a Greek playwright, actor, comedian, script writer, producer, tv presenter, writer, columnist, songwriter and performer. He was ranked 83rd by the public in Skai TV's Great Greeks in 2009. In 2010, Forbes ranked Lazopoulos as the most powerful and influential celebrity in Greece.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martha Higareda</span> Mexican actress, writer, producer (b. 1983)

Martha Elba Guadalupe Higareda Cervantes is a Mexican actress, producer and screenwriter.

Giorgos Fountas was a Greek actor in film and television.

Fanis Mouratidis is a Greek actor.

Dinos Iliopoulos was a Greek actor. He was one of the most prevalent film/theater actors in Greece.

<i>The Countess of Corfu</i> 1972 Greek film

The Countess of Corfu is a 1972 film starring Rena Vlahopoulou, Alekos Alexandrakis and Nonika Galinea. The movie was filmed in Corfu, the birthplace of Rena Vlahopoulou.

Anastasia Tsilimpiou is a Greek-Romanian actress and model. She began her career at the age of five as a child actor and model. She is multilingual and can speak Greek, Romanian, English and Turkish.

<i>Worlds Apart</i> (2015 film) 2015 Greek film

Worlds Apart is a 2015 Greek drama film directed by Christoforos Papakaliatis. It consists of three separate narratives, each following a love story between a foreigner and a Greek. Each story represents a different generation falling in love during a time of socioeconomic turmoil that dominates Southern Europe as a whole, only to connect as a single story in the end.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobias Iaconis</span> German American screenwriter

Tobias Iaconis is a German American screenwriter. His writing partner is Mikki Daughtry. He is best known for writing, with Daughtry, the films The Curse of La Llorona (2019), Five Feet Apart (2019) and Nightbooks (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinnacle Peak Pictures</span> American film production and distribution company

Pinnacle Peak Pictures is an American independent evangelical Christian film production and distribution studio founded by David A. R. White and Russell Wolfe. Pinnacle Peak produces Christian films, including God's Not Dead (2014), Do You Believe? (2015), Woodlawn (2015), The Case for Christ (2017), and Unplanned (2019). Since 2014, films produced and distributed by Pure Flix have collectively grossed over $195 million at the worldwide box office. The company has headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Chrysa Spiliotis was a Greek stage and television actress, playwright and radio presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athina Oikonomakou</span> Greek actress, businesswoman and media personality

Athina Oikonomakou is a Greek actress, businesswoman, media personality and model. After she finished her acting studies she made her first acting appearances on television, theatre and cinema. She gained huge fame in 2009 when she started leading on daytime soap opera of MEGA The life of the other woman as Xenia Pappa from 2009 to 2012. Followed by the other daytime successful lead roles in Stolen Dreams (2011), The ring of fire (2014) and On my shoes (2016).

<i>Maestro in Blue</i> Greek drama television series

Maestro in Blue is a Greek drama television series airing on Mega Channel in Greece and through Netflix worldwide. The series consists of three seasons with a total of 19 episodes.

Theodora Papadimitriou known as Doretta Papadimitriou is a Greek actress, presenter and former athlete.

References

  1. "Χριστόφορος Παπακαλιάτης – Το βιογραφικό, η ηλικία, η κρυφή προσωπική ζωή και η σχέση με την οικογένειά του" (in Greek). 15 December 2022.
  2. https://www.ekathimerini.com/culture/1200787/maestro-in-blue-the-first-greek-series-on-netflix/ [ bare URL ]
  3. Papapostolou, Anastasios (May 31, 2013). ""What If" you never watch this interview with Christopher Papakaliatis…". Greek hollywood reporter. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  4. "Δεκαετία 2010-2019: Αυτές είναι οι 20 πιο εμπορικές ταινίες στο ελληνικό box office - FLIX". flix.gr (in Greek). 30 December 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  5. "Romantic drama 'Worlds Apart' spins three satisfying love stories set in Greece". Los Angeles Times. 2017-01-19. ISSN   0458-3035 . Retrieved 2017-08-07.