November is going to be Koraly Dimitriadis’ month. The controversial poet and artist is back this month with a vengeance. She’s just finished adapting four of her poems into films, one of which features her mentor, award-winning writer, Christos Tsiolkas, she prepares to enter the La Mama Theatre arena, and to launch one of her films at the 20th Delphi Bank Greek Film Festival.
Co-directed and filmed by Big Brother housemate Nathan Little – and partially funded by the Australia Council – the Good Greek Girls Film Project explores taking a page poem and dramatising the moment into a short film.
“I am able to embody the poem and convey that emotion to my audience. But making the films has taken my performance to a higher level. Because Nathan and I were able to connect creatively, he was able to take me to a very deep place within the poem with each take – it was scary sometimes,” she says in a statement. Dimitriadis produced, wrote and co-directed the films.
Her career, she believes, took off after her self-published Love and F**k Poems, a verse novel about sexual repression and liberation. Initially a zine, it has gone on to be republished as a ‘Deluxe Edition’ book by her publishing company, Outside The Box Press, to be signed by Pan Macmillan’s digital imprint, Momentum. It is the bestselling poetry book this year at Readings Bookshop, as well as Brunswick Street Bookstore and Polyester Books, where it is one of the bestsellers overall.
Dimitriadis will explore the space between theatre, language, film and music in her La Mama Exploration show Good Greek Girl, featuring prominent contrabassist Nick Tsiavos and including one of her films, Best Friend, which will also be screened at the 20th Delphi Bank Greek Film Festival.
“The films have taken on a life of their own,” Dimitriadis says. “I am hoping to send them to around the world. It’s exciting that poetry can move from the page to the stage to the screen.” Dimitriadis has proven that poetry is indeed alive and kicking. She will also continue to work on her two books, Misplaced and Good Greek Girls.
Good Greek Girl will be performed at La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street Carlton, VIC, from 5 November to 7 November.