Yolanda Markopoulou was born in 1981 in Athens, Greece. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Film Production from Boston University’s College of Communication that she completed in May 2003. After working in Los Angeles in film she returned to Greece and worked in theatre next to the world acclaimed director Michael Cacoyannis (Lysistrata, Athens Concert Hall, Getty Villa L.A, University of Michigan, Loyola Marymount, Boston 2005-2007). In 2006 she collaborated as an assistant director with Stathis Livathinos on the project The Idiot by F. Dostoyevsky at the Experimental Stage of the National Theatre. In 2007 she directed her first theatre show Tejas Verdes by Fermin Cabal in an old car repair shop (‘synergyo’ in Greek).

The space she founded continues working as SYNERGY-O (www.synergyo.gr), an experimental art space in the center of Athens. After presenting more than 20 performances in its space, Synergyo’s main goal today is to produce artistic work based on social themes offering at the same time art workshops for people in need. For the past 5 years Yolanda has been working with refugees and immigrants at the theatre-art therapy based program Station Athens she created together with NGO AMAKA. The Station Athens Group that was born in the course of the workshop presented the documentary theatre project We are the Persians! at the Athens Festival and it has also been invited to pitch at ISPA in NYC in January 2016.

She has directed over ten plays and short films (details listed below). In 2011 she was nominated for the Eleftheria Sapountzi Prize for best woman theatre professional. She took part in "24hour Plays" (Chora Theatre, 2010); she worked with the German group Rimini Protokoll for the show Prometheus in Athens (Athens Festival 2010), and has organized several events, concerts and exhibitions in Synergy-o (Lahza, Children Photos from Refugee Camps in Lebanon, PH15 Children’s photos in Argentinian Villas and more.)

On the producing side, since 2007 she runs Polyplanity Productions a boutique production company for theatre, film and interdisciplinary projects (www.polyplanity.com). With Polyplanity Productions she is one of the producers in the film Meteora directed by Spyros Stathoulopoulos (Berlinale 2012, Official Selection, In Competition). She collaborates as a line producer with the Onassis Cultural Center ‘STEGI’ since it opened in 2010. At the moment she produces Beaumarchais’ The Marriage of Figaro at the Athens Concert Hall and Homers' ILIAD (an adaptation of all 24 books) directed by Stathis Livathinos, the only Greek large-scale production on tour internationally (Athens Festival 2013, Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam, Centro Dramatico Nacional Madrid, Mérida International Festival Spain, Santiago A Mil Chile, Sibiu Romania, CINARS Canada, Cyprus, Nemzeti Szinhas Budapest and more tο be announced).

FILMOGRAPHY (director and/or producer)
It’s ok my Friend, Short Film, Producer and Director, August 2012
Athens International Short Film Festival 2012, Aix de Provence Festival Tous Courts 2013, Short Film Corner, Cannes Film Festival 2013.
Meteora, Feature Film, dir. Spyros Stathoulopoulos, Executive Producer, 2011
Berlinale Official Selection 2012
The Pyramids of Athens, Short Film, Producer and Director, 2010
Drama Short Film Festival, Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, Florida - U.S.A, ION International Film Festival, Turkey (2010), Aubagne International Film Festival – France, SEE Film Festival - USA, Los Angeles Greek Film Festival - USA, Les Nuits Mediteranees - Corsica, Chicago Greek Film Festival - USA, Mediterranean Short Film Festival of Tangier - Morocco, 4th annual London Greek Film Festival - UK, 4th Beirut Greek Film Festival - Lebanon, Oaxaca FilmFest - Mexico (2011),Screened at Michael Cacoyannis Foundation, Nixon Bar Cinema, bought by Cinecourts,Cine+.
The Journey I Fear,Short Film,Producer and Director 2007
‘3in 3’ British Council Film Festival Winner
Paperboat, Short Film, dir. Daphne Lambrinou, Production Designer (USC Thesis Film)
2005, American Film Institute, Best Woman Director Award, 2006
The Heart is Deceitful Above all Things, dir. Asia Argento, Associate Producer, Foley Art Supervisor, Foley Artist,2004
Cannes Film Festival Director's Fortnight 2004
Maat, Short Film, Producer, Director, Editor, 2004 (Boston University Thesis Film)
Drama Short Film Festival, Short Film Corner, Cannes 2005

DIRECTED IN THEATRE
The ImmiGRants by S. Mrozek, Kefallinias Theatre 2016 (in production)
WARD no6 by A. Chekhov, Kefallinias Theatre 2015
We are the Persians! Station Athens Group, Athens Festival 2015
I_LEFT Station Athens Group, Synergy-o (Site Specific) 2014
Speech(less) by D. Generalis, Spirto Festival, Michael Cacoyannis Foundation 2013
La Tierra by J.R. Fernandez, Synergy-o (Site Specific) 2012
1911-texts by A. Papadiamantis, Synergy-o (Site Specific) 2011
Exodusby A. Stamatis, Synergy-o 2010
Against Progress, by Esteve Soler, Synergy-o (Site Specific) 2010
Shoot-Get Treasure-Repeat by M. Ravenhill, Synergy-o 2010
In the Forest of the Kind, International Conference for Ancient Drama, Delphi, 2009
Dead Travellers byA. Papadiamantis, Synergy-o 2009
Tejas Verdes by Fermin Cabal, Synergy-o 2007