Michael Cacoyiannis, born in Limassol, is closely related to Greece and its contemporary history. He studied law and dramatic art in London. After working as an actor and director for the English stage, he arrived in Athens in 1953 and devoted himself to cinema. He made "Windfall in Athens "(1954), "Stella" (1955), "The Girl in Black" (1956), "A Matter of Dignity" (1958), and was the first Greek director to achieve international recognition. He went on to make the films: "Our Last Spring "(1960), "The Wastrel "(1961) and brought to the screen Euripides' "Electra" in 1962. In 1964, success came with his famous film, an ode to the Greek unparallel spirit, "Zorba the Greek", based on the book by Nikos Kazantzakis. Anthony Quinn was a more than exceptional choice for the leading role, who successfully attempted to depict Greek soul dancing to the magnificent tunes of Mikis Theodorakis' "Sirtaki'. The film was nominated for 9 Oscars and won six. His other films include "The Day the Fishes Came Out" (1967), two further tragedies: "The Trojan Women "(1971) and "Iphigenia" (1976), a fervent documentary about the plight of Cyprus Attila '74, "Sweet Country" (1986) and his most recent film "Up, Down and Sideways "(1992).