“His deepest condolences to the people who stood by him with their love and appreciation”, says the Hellenic Film Center in a statement, saying goodbye to Spyros Fokas, who passed away at the age of 86. At the same time, he mentions the film “Sonia”, which is screened today in honor, as part of the Festival’s tribute to Takis Kanellopoulos, a work in which “the mature masculinity of Spyros Fokas dominates”.

“The news of the death of Spyros Fokas finds our film community at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, on the day of the honorary screening of the film “Sonia”, as part of the Festival’s tribute to Takis Kanellopoulos. In this work, the mature masculinity of Spyros Fokas dominates next to the airy Antigone Doudoumi. When “Sonia” was filmed in 1980, Spyros Fokas was already a Greek international movie star. His first film, in 1959, “Bloody Sunset” by Andreas Lambrinos, brought him to cosmopolitan Cannes, the gateway to what followed in Italy and Hollywood. He starred in the iconic drama “Rocco and his brothers” by Luchino Visconti (with Catina Paxinos), in “The Death of a Friend” by Franco Rossi (winning an acting award at the Locarno festival) and in other films by well-known creators. Then came Hollywood, where his physique matched the stereotype of beauty exuding the face and figure of the Oriental. In Greece and in its now classic cinema, his presence in the film “Stephania” by Yiannis Dalianidis, alongside Zoi Laskaris, will be unforgettable.

The Hellenic Film Center expresses its deepest condolences to the people who stood by him with their love and appreciation.”