Athena Xenidou
athena.xenidou@gmail.com, LinkedIn: Athena Xenidou, Tel (631) 645-1723, 011-357-99- 467966, www.athenaxenidou.com
Professional Profile
An accomplished acting coach and award-winning director and producer in theatre, film and television with 18 years of experience in film and stage productions from inception to completion. Experience in teaching acting, directing and producing for film and theatre.
Professional Appointments
| Guest Lecturer in Theatre Production/Directing | University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus | 10/2012-Present |
| Acting Coach | Master Class in Acting Techniques, Red Stage Theatre Drama School, Nicosia, Cyprus | 10/ 2012-Present |
| Guest Lecturer in Drama | European University, Nicosia, Cyprus | 09/2010-06/2011 |
| Artistic Director/Theatre Coach | Motion Art Studio Fine Arts School, Nicosia, Cyprus | 09/ 2010-Present |
| Drama Teacher | Cube Fine Arts School, Nicosia, Cyprus | 09/ 2010-06/2012 |
| Artistic Director/Acting Coach | The Drama Studio, Private Masterclass and Acting Showcase, Cyprus | 03/2009-Present |
| Guest Lecturer in Documentary Filmmaking | University of California, Santa Barbara, U.S.A. | 03/2001 |
| Editor and Research Supervisor | Cyprus Artists, published by Pantheon, Cyprus | 09/2000-09/2001 |
| Teaching Assistant, Acting/Directing | Professor Daniel Stewart, University of California Santa Barbara,U.S.A. | 09/1996-02/1997 |
Specialties
Teaching Producing and Directing for Film and Theatre
Teaching Documentary Filmmaking
Teaching Directing Reality TV Shows
Training professional actors in Acting for Theatre, Film and Television
Designing and directing independent drama master class workshops for professionals and amateurs
Heading drama classes for pre-school, primary school, teenagers and adults
Coaching students for auditions and prepares them for entry to drama schools in US and UK
Teaching Stella Adler, the Meisner Technique and Method Acting
Professional Productions
| Theatre | ||
| Director | The Stone (2013) | National Theatre, Cyprus |
| Producer/Director | The Good Body (2013) | Xmas Productions, Cyprus |
| Producer/Director | After Miss Julie (2012) | Xmas Productions, Cyprus – Greece |
| Director | I Hate Hamlet (2011) | Theater Ena, Cyprus |
| Director | Touch and Go (2010) | Theater Dionysos, Cyprus |
| Producer/Director | The Vagina Monologues (2009) | Xmas Productions, Cyprus |
| Director | The Shadow Box (2007) | National Theatre, Cyprus |
| Director | Youkali (2004) | Reform, Greece |
| Feature Film | ||
| Co-producer/Co-writer/co-director | Socrates & Soc (in development with Barry Cook) | Ministry of Illusion,S.A.,U.S.A. |
| Producer/Writer/Director | Unwitnessed Memories (2000) | Sigma TV, Lumiere TV, Cyprus |
| Art Director | Radichio Rosso (1999) | Radichio Productions, Italy |
| Set Decorator | Bad City Blues– starring Dennis Hopper (1999) | Bad City Pictures, U.S.A |
| Television | ||
| Director | Survivor 2 (2004) all episodes (42) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Director | The Farm 2 (2004) all episodes (32) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Casting Director | Pop Idol (2004) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Director | Survivor 1 (2003) all episodes (28) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Director | The Farm VIP (2003) all episodes (12) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Director | The Farm 1 (2002) all episodes(32) | Fremantle Media SA, Mega TV, Greece |
| Art Director | SCI Files:The Human Torch (2002) | Glasshead Productions, London, UK |
| Short Films | ||
| Associate Producer | Tripwire (1999) | American Film Institute, U.S.A. |
| Producer/Writer/Director | The Made Guy (1997) | UC Santa Barbara, U.S.A. |
| Co-producer | Dead End (1996) | UC Santa Barbara, U.S.A. |
| Music Videos | ||
| Producer/Director | I agapi tou kalokairiou (2006) | Xmas Productions, Greece |
| Producer/Director | Anarotiemai (2004) | Xmas Productions, Greece |
| Producer/Director | Stigmes Alithias (2000) | Xmas Productions, Cyprus |
Education
| MA International Relations and Media, University of Nicosia, Cyprus | June 2009 |
| BA Film Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara, U.S.A | June 1997 |
| Certification, English Literature, Drama and Music, University of Fribourg, Switzerland | December 1993 |
| Certification, Grade 8 Pianoforte, Grade 6 Music Theory, Royal Schools of Music, London, UK | June 1992 |
Awards and Distinctions
International Emmy Awards, USA, Jury Member, 2001-2006
Cannes Film Festival, France, Represented Cyprus by invitation from the European Union and the Cyprus Ministry of Culture, 2004
Olympia Dukakis’s Workshop for Professional Actors and Directors, Artos Foundation, Cyprus, February 2010
MIPCOM, France, Invited by Sigma TV, 1999
The Shadow Box (2009), Awarded Best Male Actor, Nominated for Set Design & Lighting Design – National Theater Awards, Cyprus
Unwitnessed Memories (2001), Special Jury Award for Best Documentary – WORLDFEST Houston Film Festival;
Best Documentary – Cyprus International Film Festival; Official Selection at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, International Human Rights Film Festival in Prague, International Festival of Visual Arts in Hungary, Thessaloniki International Film Festival in Greece and Viewpoint International Documentary Film Festival in Belgium
The Made Guy (1997), Best Cinematography Award, Short Reel Film Festival in Santa Barbara, U.S.A
Dead End (1996), Best Project in Arts and Humanities Award and Scholarship, University California, Santa Barbara, U.S.A
References
Barry Cook, director of Oscar-nominated Mulan, and Arthur Christmas and Walking with Dinosaurs, USA
Professor Janet Walker, PhD, Dept of Film Studies & Media, University of California Santa Barbara, USA
Kyriakos Kenevezos, Minister of Education and Culture, Cyprus
George Papageorgiou, Director of the National Theatre, Cyprus
Avgi Papakyriakou, Director of Motion Art Fine Arts School, Nicosia, Cyprus
Shaunna Ioannidou, Acting Director, University of Cyprus, Language Center, Cyprus
Media & Internet
www.athenaxenidou.com
Linkedin profile, Athena Xenidou
Greek Reporter, Greece, Article on After Miss Julie: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2012/07/17/marbers-adaptation-of-world-classic-miss-julie-opens-for-first-time-in-cyprus/
http://www.motionartstudio.eu/dramastudio.html
Additional information
Languages: English and Greek (bilingual) French – fluent
Cypriot citizen and U.S Permanent Residency – Holder of Green Card
Member of Rotary Club, Board Member, Nicosia, Cyprus June 2013-present
Member of the Nicosia Municipal Board for Art and Culture, Sept.- Jan. 2010