Michael Cacoyannis

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Michael Cacoyannis
Born	Michalis Kakogiannis (1922-06-11)11 June 1922 Limassol, Cyprus
Died	25 July 2011(2011-07-25) (aged 89) Athens, Greece
Other names	Michael Yannis
Alma mater	Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Occupation	Film director
Years active	1954–1999
Partner	Yael Dayan (1959–1967)

Michael Cacoyannis (Greek: Μιχάλης Κακογιάννης, Michalis Kakogiannis; 11 June 1922 – 25 July 2011), sometimes credited as Michael Yannis, was a Greek Cypriot theatre and film director, writer, producer, and actor.

Much of his work was rooted in classical texts, especially those of the Greek tragedian Euripides.^[1] His most acclaimed work is the 1964 film Zorba the Greek, an adaptation of Nikos Kazantzakis' novel of the same name. He also directed the 1983 Broadway revival of the musical based on the film. In addition to directing, he also wrote, produced, translated, and designed dozens of stage play and opera productions.^[2]

He was nominated for an Academy Award five times, a record for any Cypriot film artist. He received Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay nominations for Zorba the Greek, and two nominations in the Best Foreign Language Film category for Electra (1962) and Iphigenia (1977). He received many other international accolades, including the Technical Grand Prize from the Cannes Film Festival, as well as six Palme d'Or nominations.