Christos Poulakis

Christos Poulakis was born in Greece in 1987 and grew up in Venezuela, Morocco, Greece and Belgium. He attended the French sections in all the schools he went to, except for the European School of Brussels III where he joined the Greek section and from where he obtained his Baccalaureate in 2005. He then moved to Athens to study communication, media, and culture at Panteion University, graduating in 2011. Before graduating, he interned as a radio host, editor and producer at Greek national radio, as well as an international news reporter at one of Greece's largest newspapers. He then pursued his postgraduate studies at the University of Strasbourg in 2012. Since then, he has been working as a professional translator/proofreader/subtitlist. In 2019, he translated into French and published the autobiography of Markos Vamvakaris under the title "Markos Vamvakaris : le patriarche du rébétiko - Autobiographie". In 2021, he translated into English the graphic novel "The Famous Quartet of Piraeus" as well as the book "MARKOS VAMVAKARIS: FROM MYTH TO HISTORY, 1600-2017". In 2022, he translated into English the graphic novels "Island Adventures: 1. The Sand Games" and "The Archipelago on Fire, Part 1", as well as the French version of the book "MARKOS VAMVAKARIS : DU MYTHE À L’HISTOIRE, 1600-2017" and the website of the Kounadis Archives, which contains one of the richest collections of songs and documents on rebetiko and Greek music in general. In 2023, he compiled and published the book "Flushed with Knowledge: 100 trivia facts for your time on the throne" (and its French version "Savoir en chasse : 100 anecdotes pour votre règne aux toilettes"), as well as translated the sequel to the graphic novel "The Archipelago on Fire, Part 2" in English. He also edited the book "Μάρκος ο Συριανός" ("Markos the Syran"), which contains, among other things, the complete discography of Markos Vamvakaris in photos. Passionate about music, he has learned to make musical instruments and play the bouzouki, and has played rebetiko in various music groups; he also offers bouzouki lessons. He has also directed short films and held various positions in film and documentary productions.