“Giannis in the Cities” Screening and Q&A with Director Eleni Alexandrakis 

Giannis in the Cities (2024) – Screening and Q&A with Director Eleni Alexandrakis 

Presented by the UCLA SNF Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture
and the UCLA Film & Television Archive

February 22, 2026
7:00 PM
Billy Wilder Theater at the Hammer Museum

Free admission. No advance reservations required.

During the Greek Civil War fought between 1946-1949, childhood itself became a frontline in the clash between government and rebel forces. Under the guise of offering protection and education, the Greek government enticed parents to surrender their children to a system of Childcare Cities that served as indoctrination mills that oftentimes alienated their wards from their own families. In her riveting, visually striking adaptation of the memoir of Greek writer Giannis Atzakas, writer-director Eleni Alexandrakis tells the searing story of Giannis and his experience growing up in these harsh institutions all the while unable to shake the memory of his rebel father and his longing to be reunited.

DCP, b/w, in Greek with English subtitles, 90 min. Director: Eleni Alexandrakis. Screenwriters: Eleni Alexandrakis, Panagiotis Evangelidis. With: Filippos Milikas, Agni Stroubouli, Evi Saoulidou.

In the role of Giannis: Philippos Milikas , Marios-Konstantinos Gatetzas, Konstantinos Athanassakis, Aineias Tsamatis
With: Agni Stroumbouli, Evi Saoulidou, Katia Leclerc O’Wallis, Katia Goulioni, Themis Panou, Evdoxia Androulidaki

In person: filmmaker Eleni Alexandraki; Laurie Hart, Department Chair of Anthropology & Co-Director of Center for European and Russian Studies.