Costa-Gavras facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Costa-Gavras
Κώστας Γαβράς
Costa-Gavras in 2017
Born	Konstantinos Gavras (Κωνσταντίνος Γαβράς) (1933-02-12) 12 February 1933 (age 92) Loutra Iraias, Greece
Alma mater	Institute for Advanced Cinematographic Studies
Occupation	Filmmaker
Works	Full list
Spouse(s)	Michèle Ray
Children	Alexandre Gavras Julie Gavras Romain Gavras
Awards	Full list

Konstantinos "Kostas" Gavras (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος "Κώστας" Γαβράς; born 12 February 1933), known as Costa-Gavras, is a famous Greek-French film director, screenwriter, and producer. He lives and works in France. He is well-known for making movies about political topics.

Some of his most famous films include the thriller Z (1969). This movie won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Another important film is Missing (1982). For Missing, he won the top award at the Cannes Film Festival, called the Palme d'Or. He also won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for it. Most of his films are in French, but he has also made six movies in English.

Early Life and Education

Costa-Gavras was born in Loutra Iraias, a village in Arcadia, Greece. His family lived in the Peloponnese region during World War II. After the war, they moved to Athens.

His father was part of a Greek resistance group. Because of this, Costa-Gavras could not go to university in Greece. He also could not get a visa to the United States. So, after finishing high school, he moved to France. In 1951, he started studying literature at the Sorbonne in Paris.

Starting His Film Career

In 1956, Costa-Gavras decided to stop studying literature. He wanted to learn about filmmaking instead. He joined the French national film school, IDHEC.

After film school, he worked as an assistant director for famous filmmakers. These included Yves Allégret, Jean Giono, and René Clair. After gaining more experience, he directed his first full-length movie. It was called Compartiment Tueurs and came out in 1965.

Important Films by Costa-Gavras

Costa-Gavras is known for making films that explore important social and political issues.

Z (1969)

His 1969 film Z is a thrilling story. It is about a judge, played by Jean-Louis Trintignant, who tries to find out the truth about a politician's murder. Government officials try to hide what really happened. The film is based on the real-life assassination of Greek politician Grigoris Lambrakis in 1963. When Z was released, Greece was under military rule. The film won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

The Confession (1970)

L'Aveu (The Confession, 1970) tells the story of Artur London. He was a communist minister in Czechoslovakia. He was wrongly arrested and put on trial for treason in 1952. The film shows how people were forced to confess to crimes they did not commit.

State of Siege (1972)

State of Siege (1972) is set in Uruguay in the early 1970s. At that time, Uruguay had a military government. The movie is about an American embassy official, played by Yves Montand, who is kidnapped. He is questioned by a group that wants to expose secret American support for harsh governments in Latin America.

Missing (1982)

Missing (1982) is based on a true story. It is about an American journalist, Charles Horman, who disappeared in Chile in 1973. This was during a time when the military took over the government. Horman's father, played by Jack Lemmon, and his wife, played by Sissy Spacek, search for him. The film won an Oscar for Best Screenplay Adaptation. It also won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Music Box (1989)

In Music Box (1989), a respected Hungarian-American man is accused of terrible actions during World War II. His daughter, a lawyer played by Jessica Lange, defends him. The film was inspired by a real trial and a screenwriter's discovery about his own father. This movie won the Golden Bear award at the 40th Berlin International Film Festival.

Amen. (2003)

Amen. (2003) is partly based on a play called The Deputy. The film suggests that Pope Pius XII knew about the suffering of Jewish people in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. However, the film shows that he did not speak out publicly against the Holocaust. Costa-Gavras won an award for Best Original Screenplay for this film.

Films About Important Issues

Costa-Gavras is famous for combining serious political topics with exciting movie stories. He often explores themes like law, justice, and unfair power. His early films often focused on violence and torture. He is skilled at making movies that deliver a strong message.

Most of his films have focused on right-wing governments or groups. For example, Z was about the Greek military. State of Siege and Missing were about right-wing dictatorships in Latin America. His film Amen. also looked at the conservative leaders of the Catholic Church in the 1940s.

However, L'Aveu (The Confession) is different. It deals with unfair treatment by a Communist government during the Stalinist era.

Style and Approach

Costa-Gavras brings attention to important global issues through his films. He uses cinematic storytelling to make these topics engaging. For example, Z (1969) tells the story of how democracy was weakened in Greece. He made this difficult history into a fast-paced mystery-thriller. He is good at turning big political problems into personal stories that audiences can connect with.

His films often show corruption by European and American powers. These movies, like Z, State of Siege, and Missing, highlight hidden problems in society. He believes these are issues that many people are uncomfortable discussing. His approach in L'Aveu also encouraged viewers to think critically about the Communist system.

Until 2019, Costa-Gavras had never made a film in Greece or in the Greek language. His 2019 film, Adults in the Room, was his first Greek-language movie.

Influences on His Work

When asked about his biggest influences, Costa-Gavras mentioned several filmmakers and movies. He was amazed by Erich von Stroheim's film Greed, which showed him that long movies could have sad endings. He also said Akira Kurosawa was a big influence.

Some movies that influenced him include The Grapes of Wrath by John Ford. He also mentioned Sergei Eisenstein and later, Ingmar Bergman. Other directors he listed were René Clément, Jacques Demy, and Gillo Pontecorvo's film The Battle of Algiers.

Legacy and Impact

Costa-Gavras's films have had a big impact on political cinema. Wade Major from the Directors Guild of America said that Costa-Gavras "almost single-handedly created the modern political thriller" with films like Z and Missing. In 2018, German Director Wim Wenders called him "One of the greatest filmmakers of our time."

He has influenced many other directors. These include Oliver Stone, William Friedkin, Steven Soderbergh, Rachid Bouchareb, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Ben Affleck.

Oliver Stone said that Costa-Gavras was one of his earliest role models. He studied Z when he was a film student. William Friedkin said that after seeing Z, he realized how he could film The French Connection. He noted that Costa-Gavras shot Z like a documentary, making it feel real. Steven Soderbergh said Z inspired his film Traffic.

Awards and Recognition

Costa-Gavras's first film, Compartiment Tueurs, won an award for Best Foreign Language Film.

His film Z was the first movie ever to be nominated for both Best Picture and Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars. It won the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. It also won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and a Golden Globe Award. Z was also the first foreign-language film to win the Best Film award from the New York Film Critics Circle. Costa-Gavras also won the Best Director award from them.

In 2013, he received an honorary doctorate from the Film School of the Aristotle University. He also received the Magritte Honorary Award in 2013. In 2017, he was the first filmmaker to receive the Catalonia International Prize.

Personal Life

Costa-Gavras has three children who are also directors: his daughter Julie Gavras and his sons Romain Gavras and Alexandre Gavras. He is also related to Penelope Spheeris, Jimmie Spheeris, and Chris Spheeris.

Filmography

Films

See also

In Spanish: Costa-Gavras para niños