In 2020, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation donated €2,400,000 to provide immediate food support to vulnerable families in Greece, whose livelihoods had been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. 600 tons of food were delivered to food banks in over 300 municipalities all over Greece, and almost 10,000 families in 200 municipalities received vouchers from AB Vasilopoulos supermarket to buy their own groceries. This emergency relief helped those most in need to feed their families with dignity.
Work Category: Audiovisual
A Rubens Masterpiece or a Really Big Mistake?
In 1929 a striking painting surfaced in Paris and was quickly certified as the long-lost Samson and Delilah by Rubens, on the word of a single expert, Ludwig Burchard.
That same painting was purchased for a record sum in 1980, with public money….and now hangs in London’s National Gallery – in Rubens’ Name.
But dozens of Burchard’s attributions to Rubens have now been acknowledged as mistakes. Is the Samson and Delilah perhaps his biggest mistake of all?
Watch this 3-minute video and decide for yourself.
Culture is Oxygen
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) has donated billions of euros to Greece’s most priceless asset: culture. From opera to music festivals, dance to exhibitions, architecture to theatre, the SNF supports Greece’s creative industries as the catalyst for new ideas and the thread that brings communities together. I worked with the talented folk at Avion Films to put together this 1-minute sampler of the SNF’s contribution to Greek culture.
You can watch the video right here.
Forest 500, Animation
Forest 500 is the world’s first rainforest ratings agency. It tracks how companies, investors and governments are performing in the race to remove deforestation from global supply chains.
It was a joy to write the script for this animation, produced for the 2015 Climate Conference in Paris. My third collaboration with the brilliant Moth Studio, commissioned by think tank Global Canopy.
Planet Under Pressure
I wrote the storyline for this powerful animation created by the hugely talented folk at Moth Studio.
Commissioned by Global Canopy, our film explains how destroying rainforests for commodities is putting the world’s water, energy, food and climate security at risk.
Watch the film and find out how joined-up thinking can save trees – and save our planet.
A Place of Change, Stavros Niarchos Foundation
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre is the most impressive cultural landmark in Athens for, oh at least five centuries. Designed by Renzo Piano, the new national library, national opera and waterfront park are at the cutting edge of sustainable architecture.
As researcher and scriptwriter of this 15-minute documentary, I interviewed the architects, landscape designers, engineers, and builders behind this beacon of green design. Produced by my wonderful friends at Avion Films, this short film takes you behind the scenes as the project takes shape.
City Secrets London, National Geographic
Where has Kate Moss been 25 times? Where did George III keep a ‘turkey monkey’? Which famous shop invented the Scotch egg? Which London pub is a law unto itself?
Find out the answers and uncover a total of 100 London secrets in the app that I compiled for National Geographic.
Amazonia Security Agenda
Always a pleasure to work with Moth Studio, who are incredibly clever at making complicated science accessible.
For this short film commissioned by Global Canopy, my brief was to create a succinct script that explains how we depend on the Amazon rainforest for water security. If we keep destroying the rainforest, drinking water, electricity, and food production will dry up, affecting millions of people.
Thanks to Vimeo for selecting this as a staff pick.
Animated Introduction to REDD
So much fun working on this animated short with director Paul Plowman and sound designer Malcolm Goldie.
REDD+ stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries. An unwieldy acronym simplified through smart infographics.
I wrote the script and did the voiceover, too.
The Truce Story, Animation
The Greek gods of Olympus have long abandoned hope of humankind ever living in peace. But when Hermes, messenger of the Gods, brings news that the Olympics are coming home to Athens, and that the ancient tradition of Olympic Truce is being revived, he causes quite a stir. The people on earth embark on an olive branch relay to spread the message of peace around the world. But Aris, the god of war, has other plans…
I loved working with Green Olive Films in Athens to create this animated teaser for my comic book, The Truce Story.