Super Paradise

SYNOPSIS

Over the past 70 years, Mykonos has experienced transformations that test the limits of imagination ― it was dirt cheap, today it’s unaffordable; it was “off-the-beaten-track,” today it’s a top destination; it was inclusive, today it’s exclusive. So, what happened? How did a tiny island become a melting pot for such radically divergent experiences? Was it paradise? Is it still?

A variety of cinematic tools are used to transport viewers from poverty-stricken post-WWII Mykonos to the halcyon days of the 1970s to the island as it is today. Archival material, Super 8 re-enactments, drone and cell phone footage, retro animation ― we energetically mash up different formats because THAT reflects the Mykonian experience, which ranges from the peaceful calm of an idyllic beach to an all-night rager.

The material is intercut with exclusive interviews, a mosaic of people of all ages from different walks of life ― locals, internationals, intellectuals, artists, farmers, bar owners ― all offering a unique perspective on the Mykonian experience and providing a behind-the-scenes, intimate view of a complicated and fascinating island.

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

I was privileged enough to visit Mykonos for the first time in 1979 and spent the following six summers there. These trips marked my life. It was on this tiny island that I decided to become a filmmaker, guided and inspired by a fascinating cast of characters who helped me realize my dream. The young people I met back then were pioneers; they personified the era of the 1970s. And in a twist of fate, 45 years later, some of them are the main characters of our film.

These characters have not just borne witness to the radical transformations that have come to define Mykonos over the course of the past seventy years. Many of them were active participants who played important roles in the development, and subsequent over-development, of this small island. So on a certain level, SUPER PARADISE goes beyond the simple documentation of unique personas; it examines not only the personal interests, but the socio-political and economic factors that played significant roles in the history of the island.

The film is an immersive, emotional journey, transporting viewers from the extreme poverty of post-WWII Mykonos to the 1970s, a time of total freedom and unbridled hedonism, to the harsh reality that defines the island today. The objective is not to simply describe what occured in Mykonos in the past, and what is happening today, but to use every cinematic tool at my disposal to make an emotional connection with the viewer, to transmit what it felt and feels like to be ravaged by raw beauty and touched by divine light.

What press wrote about the movie:

Variety https://variety.com/2025/film/global/super-paradise-golden-age-mykonos-1236338295/

News247 https://www.news247.gr/politismos/cinema/itan-mia-efforia-pou-den-exo-xanazisei-o-stiv-krikris-mas-xenagei-stin-palia-mikono/

Cosmopoliti https://cos