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Athina Rachel Tsangari

Athina Rachel Tsangari

Producer, director, writer and actor, also editor · Born April 2, 1966 (60) · Athens, Kingdom of Greece [now Greece]

Venice award winner · Berlinale award nominee · Sundance award nominee · 1 other major award body

Athina Rachel Tsangari is a Greek filmmaker. Some of her most notable works include her feature films, The Slow Business of Going (2000), Attenberg (2010) and Chevalier (2015) as well as the co-production of Yorgos Lanthimos films Kinetta (2005), Dogtooth (2009), and Alps (2011). In her versatile work for cinema, she has also founded and been director of the Cinematexas International Short Film Festival. In 2014-2015, she was invited to Harvard University’s Visual and Environmental Studies department as a Visiting Lecturer on Art, Film, and Visual Studies. Tsangari was born in Athens, Greece. She holds a university degree from the Faculty of Philosophy of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, and two post-graduate diplomas: an MA in performance studies from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, and an MFA in Film Directing from the University of Texas at Austin. Her first experience working in film was with a small role in Richard Linklater's 1991 film Slacker. Since then, Tsangari has assumed multiple roles within the film industry.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
April 2, 1966 (60)
From
Athens, Kingdom of Greece [now Greece]
Works as
Producer, director, writer and actor, also editor
Titles
16 on MovieCove · 35 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 157 days to Oct 28Up 37% in 30 days

What are Athina Rachel Tsangari's films like?

Across their 14 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Bonds.

Genres

Drama9 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 59th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Comedy3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 50th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
24%
Bonds
23%
Self
20%
Power
14%
Survival
10%
Morality
5%
Ideas
4%
Family bonds4 titles, browse their movies with this themeDisplacement4 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 13 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 2 · Serious 3 · Dark 8

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 6 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 3

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 9 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 6 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 2

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 10 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 5

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 10

Ambiguous: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their ambiguous movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 2 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 7

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Melancholic
9
Tense
7
Absurd
5
Contemplative
6
Dread
2
Other
8

How their films linger

Thought-provoking9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet7
  • Ambiguous6

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Athina Rachel Tsangari's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 16 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Athina Rachel Tsangari's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

35 credits, 16 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • The First Image (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Producer

  • Harvest(2024)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • September Says (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Thanks

  • Ladies in Waiting (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Producer

  • Digger(2020)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • Upload(2020)

    Show 2 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all shows

  • Trigonometry(2020)

    Show 5 episodes · Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all shows

  • 30/30 Vision: 3 Decades of Strand Releasing(2019)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Olla (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Thanks

  • Fireflies(2018)

    Co-Producer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Reneepoptosis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Thanks

  • Preparation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Producer

  • After Before (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer · Sound · as Self

  • The Invisible Hands (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Executive Producer

  • Athina Rachel Tsangari: Cinema on the Edges (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Actor

  • Hold Me (Ca Caw Ca Caw) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Thanks

  • Chevalier(2015)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Petting Zoo(2015)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • Lake Los Angeles(2014)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films

  • The Benaki Museum (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director · Writer

  • 24 Frames per Century (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director

  • Venice 70: Future Reloaded (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Before Midnight(2013)

    Co-Producer · as Ariadni

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Pearblossom Hwy(2012)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • The Capsule (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Director · Art Direction · Costume Design · Producer · Screenplay

  • Alps(2011)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Attenberg(2010)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films

  • Lovers of Hate (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Executive Producer

  • Dogtooth(2009)

    Associate Producer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Dimitris Papaioannou 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director · Camera Operator · Cinematographer · Producer

  • Palestine Blues(2006)

    Editor · Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Kinetta (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Producer

  • The Slow Business of Going (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director

  • Fit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    Director

  • Slacker(1990)

    as Cousin from Greece

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 33 titles from 1990 to 2025.

Biggest box office

Before Midnight (2013)

$22M worldwide

Highest rated

Before Midnight (2013)

Midcredits 97th

Most popular right now

Dogtooth (2009)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting3 of 33: 2 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting14 of 33: 6 only directing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score52ndWriting6 of 33: 0 only writing, 6 with another roleProducing19 of 33: 11 only producing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score66thCinematography2 of 33: 0 only cinematography, 2 with another roleEditing1 of 33: 0 only editing, 1 with another roleOther crew7 of 33: 4 only other crew, 3 with another role

33 titles, 10 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 6 of them.

By decade

1990s2 · 1 acting · 1 crew2000s5 · crew2010s19 · 2 acting · 18 crew2020s7 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

1 major award from 7 major nominations, 2010–2024.

WinNomination
  1. 2024
    • Venice award, nominated · Best Film
  2. 2020
    • Berlinale award, nominated · Best Feature Film
  3. 2017
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best International Film
  4. 2013
    • Sundance award, nominated
  5. 2010
    • Venice award, won
    • Venice award, nominated ×2

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Athina Rachel Tsangari's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 59th percentile, the median of all 14; across their 13 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 60th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

60thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Approval · how many liked their films

59thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Reach · how many have seen their films

55thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Midcredits score across 16 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th9
  • 25th to 49th1
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 16 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic2
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · producer, editor

Palestine Blues (2006)

91st percentile spread · 21% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, producer

Before Midnight (2013)

Midcredits 97th · 85% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 74/100 and the pacing 41/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Athina Rachel Tsangari's work okay for kids?

Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, sex & nudity runs heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 27 · mildMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity6 titles50–83 · median 68 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 64 · intenseMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 32 · mildMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 15 · mildMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Athina Rachel Tsangari work with?

People who share at least 2 of Athina Rachel Tsangari's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Matthew Johnson shares the most, 5.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers