ANO (UPPER) SYROS – THE SINGING WALLS
A wander through the housing culture of Ano Syros
Documentary
Directors: Teos Romvos, Nikos Theodosiou
Script: Teos Romvos
Camera: Nikos Theodosiou
Narrator: Loukritia Dounavi
Original Music: Polykratis Polychronakis
Producer: Neaniko Plano – PHAOS FILM – 1999
Duration: 23 min.
Synopsis 1: The Fortress – settlement of Ano (Upper) Syros (Syros island in Cyclades islands Greece), build in the Middle Ages up on a hill, is unique in the Greek state. The fascinating medieval atmosphere keeps till our days, with the small houses build side by side, the convents of the Jesuits and the Cappuccinos, the Roman – Catholic churches and especially the church of Saint George on the top of the hill, center of the Catholicism at the Aegean sea. The cultural particularity of Upper Syros shows off by the narration of writer Loukritia Dounavis. The personal narration is the loom on which the images of a life are knitted, a life that goes on in the very same narrow streets, the very same houses, keeping its essential human characteristics: nationality, language, religion, customs. Dramatized scenes revive moments of the past and cultural elements that no longer exists, not through representation, but as gentle strokes of the brush on a decor that remains unfading.
Synopsis 2:The script of the movie is based on a narrated passage by Loukritia Dounavi concerning her childhood memories. Dramatized scenes bring to life moments of the past and cultural elements which have been lost, not by means of representation, but as soft brush strokes on a decor untouched by time. The special characteristics of the medieval settlement of Ano Syros are displayed through these, closely bound with the life of the people and the presentation of the tradition of the nation and populace.
The medieval settlement retains to this day its charming atmosphere. The hill is completely enriched by houses closely joined to each other. It is inhabited by Christian Catholics which explains the plethora of catholic churches and the Jesuits and Cappuccinos monasteries. In this place time seams to stand still, monotony is denied entrance to the settlement, its narrow streets and its countless steps filled with poetry.
Nikos Theodosiou and Theo Romvos met in Paris in May 1968, where they followed ethnological documentary studies near Jean Rouche and made short films. They met again in 1998 and made two documentary films in Cyclades.
ΝΙΚΟΣ ΘΕΟΔΟΣΙΟΥ 