Since we began making My Greek Odyssey, I’ve often been asked about what the process is from start to finish of an episode. Well, let me tell you, it’s quite a complex and time-consuming beast! The journey to complete the first episode started in mid 2016. It all began with a conversation about an idea, that at the time seemed too far off a dream to actually become reality. From one chat came another, and another, until later in that same year we finally had some serious plans on paper. The route had been determined, meetings had been had with all the relevant people in Australia and Greece, paperwork had been submitted, and now it was time to start drafting scripts.

Through early 2017 we were busy organising the permits, sorting out the finer details of who we wanted to interview and exactly what we wanted to film, and from there we pieced together the breakdown of each episode. The whole process is a lot of fun and a lot harder than you’d imagine. There’s so much to see in Greece that choosing what to leave out was painstaking. The next step is the filming. This occurred across a few trips, spread though the warmer months when the weather is more pleasant for swimming and taking advantage of the gorgeous sea that Greece is known for. Once the filming was completed the post-production began. This is the least enjoyable stage. As much as we loved looking back at all the amazing things we did and saw, sitting in a dark room going though well over one hundred hours of footage can be arduous!

While the editing was underway the graphics were being developed and music recorded. This is a really creative process and one that we all enjoy. Coming up with the right look for the show is very important and we went back and forth many times before settling on a final style. Similarly, the wonderful musicians we work with to create our audio profile did a great job in capturing the sounds of Greece.

Once an edit is completed it’s time for scripting. The writer has to tell the story of an episode in a manner that’s engaging and informative. It involves a little bit of research too, as a lot of what we do in the show is linked with history and culture. Then, once the script is complete we record the voiceover. From there the episode gets colour graded and the audio is mixed, and a master file is exported. In all, from that first conversation with the producers, to finishing episode one, it was close to 18 months. The completion of the entire series will take it to almost 2 years! But throughout that time we have had a lot of laughs and learnt an incredible amount about Greece. To be honest, it’s a life-changing experience, and one that I will always look back on with pride.