Made by Lysippos (Lysippos Epoesen): the story and the art of Alexander the Great's legendary sculptor

Lysippos from Sikyon of Corinth, Greece, lived in the 4th century BC. He chose Bronze as his medium. His works, however, have reached us in copies from Marble. Destined to become Alexander the Great’s exclusive portraitist, he changed forever the art of his time by capturing the instantaneous moment of action introducing ingenious dramatic and aesthetic innovations. His style - characterizing the art of the new Hellenistic era - became the ideal model for sculpture inspiring subsequent artists throughout Europe. In the film, the Spirit of Bronze and the Spirit of Marble guide us on a journey through time researching the story of the mythical sculptor. [Note: the film was digitally updated with English Subtitles in November 2015].

  • Nicholas Franghias
    Director
  • Nicholas Franghias
    Writer
  • Fay Katsari
    Producer
  • KINO Film & TV Productions S.A.
    Co-Producers
  • AVD Giannikos Post Production Studios
    Co-Producers
  • Professor Paolo Moreno
    Original Texts
  • Professor Paolo Moreno
    Key Cast
  • Kosmas Develengas as the Spirit of Bronze
    Key Cast
  • Alexis Stavrakis as the Spirit of Marble
    Key Cast
  • Anastasios C. Katsaris
    Film Score
  • Tassos Bitsakakis
    Editor
  • Nicholas Franghias
    Art-Director
  • Christos Voudouris & Katerina Maragoudaki
    Cinematographers
  • Panagiotis Karageorgis
    Grafics
  • Adam Slutsky
    2015 USA Periscope Post & Audio Services
  • Michael Thomas James
    2015 USA Periscope Post & Audio Services
  • Alex Gaudieri
    2015 USA Periscope Post & Audio Services
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Feature
  • Genres:
    Art/Culture, History, Archaeology, Alexander the Great
  • Runtime:
    56 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    May 31, 1996
  • Production Budget:
    200,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Greece
  • Country of Filming:
    Greece, Italy
  • Language:
    Modern Greek (1453-)
  • Shooting Format:
    16 mm & Beta SP
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • AGON, International Festival of Archaeological Films 1996
    Athens
    Greece
    May 31, 1996
    European Premiere
    Best Script
  • ARCHEOFILMFEST, Rassegna Internazionale Del Film Archeologico 1996
    Forli
    Italy
    September 12, 1996
    Italian Premiere
    Audience Award
  • National Gallery of Art, Washington DC (11 screenings)
    Washington DC
    United States
    January 7, 2016
    East Coast Premiere
Distribution Information
  • Nicholas Franghias
    Country: United States
    Rights: All Rights, Internet, Video on Demand, Pay Per View, Hotel, Airline, Ship, Theatrical, Video / Disc, Free TV, Paid TV, Console / Handheld Device
Director Biography - Nicholas Franghias

Niko is a multifaceted dramatist (writer-director-producer-designer-composer-lyricist) who studied film production in Britain's Croydon College, School of Art & Design. After a 6-month stint with the BBC, he worked in Greece's advertising Agency JNL Leoussis as an agency producer, copywriter, and director. Then, as a freelancer. His collaborations are winners of the advertising creativity festival in Greece, reaching the Cannes Lions festival in France.

In film, he debuted with the short '639+1 Nights.' He followed by writing, designing, and directing the feature art documentary 'Made by Lysippos' on the story and the art of Alexander the Great's image-maker, Lysippos. Awards: best script in the 'Agon' International Film Festival of Archaeological Films in Greece, and audience award at the International 'ArcheoFilmFest' in Italy. The film has been exhibited all over Europe as a unique visual approach to a historical subject. In 2016, it received screenings at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC.

Niko, over a period of ten years, won production-development awards from the Greek Film Centre (Greece's official film agency) and the Media Program of the European Union for his three narrative features. All three projects unraveled, as the funding situation in Greece became steadily worse after the Athens Olympics of 2004, followed by the Greek financial crisis. He started over by moving to the USA.

In 2011, at the request of Chicago's Greek Community, and with support by the Consulate General of Greece in Chicago, Franghias co-founded FilmHellenes-Greek Film Fest Chicago, a nonprofit with the mission of celebrating Greek film storytelling talent from around the world.

The festival had a prestigious collaboration with Chicago's Gene Siskel Film Centre, the Columbia College, the National Hellenic Museum, and a sister film festival hosted by the University of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois. Within Franghias' three years of full-time community work as director and programmer, the festival exhibited the works of 65 filmmakers from Greece, Cyprus, and the world. Niko managed a 16-member board of directors and a plethora of volunteers.

The festival also introduced an annual Honorary Award event, honoring Academy Award-winning Director of Hellenic ancestry Alexander Payne in 2012. The honoree for 2013 was literary icon, Harry Mark Petrakis.

He has been interviewed by the National Public Radio's WBEZ, he has written articles for the Greek Star (the oldest Greek-American journal), and has joined the Juries of the 2012 and 2013 Toronto Greek Short Film Festival, as well as the narrative features Jury of the 2022 and 2023 San Francisco Greek Film Festival, at their request.

Niko became a naturalized US citizen in 2019. In July 2021, he incorporated as EmberFrames, LLC, a Chicago-registered film company, co-founded with Jim Pappas.

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