To Nisi (Greek: Το Νησί; English: The Island) is a Greek television series based on the best-selling English novel The Island by Victoria Hislop airing on Mega Channel. The series premiered on 11 October 2010 to record ratings and critical acclaim. It is the most expensive Greek television production ever with a budget of €4 million. Production Conception The series is one of the most expensive television shows in Greek television history with a budget of €4 million. The Island author Victoria Hislop had previously received offers from Hollywood as high as £300,000 for the movie rights to the novel, although she opted instead to grant the rights to Mega Channel for a fraction of the price in return for some artistic control. Initial thoughts by Mega Channel were to make a film out of the novel, but they finally decided upon a 26 episode television series instead. Mirella Papaeconomou primarily took on the script's adaptation, and with Hislop's permission added stories and characters that do not exist in the novel to make the series long enough for a full season. Hislop actively participated in the entire process with ideas, suggestions, and observations. Thodoris Papadoulakis undertook the direction of the series. Filming The direction of photography was undertaken by Vaggelis Katrizidakis. Cretan director Thodoris Papadoulakis convinced Mega Channel to keep Athens out of the filming by having the entire series shot on location in Crete, arguing that Spinalonga recreates a natural setting. Filming began in December 2009 and concluded in December 2010, primarily taking place in Plaka, Spinalonga, upper Elounda, and Agios Nikolaos. Sets portraying the villages from 1939 to 1957 were designed by stage director Antonis Halkias and his colleagues. For authenticity purposes, as many scenes as possible were shot on location in Plaka and Spinalonga, including scenes of the port where the boat from the small fishing village of Plaka arrives, as well as the market streets. Shooting for many of the segments in Old Plaka took place in constructed sets resembling the old village in upper Elounda. Costuming and music Xanthi Kontou and Maria Kontodima undertook the costuming for the series. In order to gain an accurate portrayal of the period between 1939 and 1957, Kontou and Kontodima researched the styles for eight months resulting in about 2,000 unique costumes. The theme song for the series Ise Esi O Anthropos Mou performed by Andriana Babali is a