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Vojtech JasnyCzech film director and screenwriter
Date of Birth: 30.11.1925
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Content:
- Early Life and Education
- Early Career
- Success and Exile
- Return and Later Life
- Awards and Recognition
- Czech Lion for Lifetime Achievement in Czech Cinematography (2007)
Early Life and Education
Vojtěch Jasný was born in Kelč, Moravia, and spent most of World War II working at a Nazi factory while providing reconnaissance for the anti-Hitler coalition. After the war, he enrolled in the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague's FAMU, where he studied film and cinematography under Professor Karel Plicka.
Early Career
Jasný collaborated with classmate Karel Kachyňa on several documentaries and their first feature film, "Everything Ends Today" (1954). He achieved greater independence with "Desire" (1958) and gained critical acclaim with "A Cat in a Sack" (1963), which won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Success and Exile
Jasný's final film before leaving Czechoslovakia in the 1960s was "All My Compatriots" (1968). In the aftermath of the Prague Spring, he became a politically persecuted figure, leading him to emigrate and direct television films in Austria, West Germany, Yugoslavia, and the United States. He also taught at universities in Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, and New York.
Return and Later Life
After the Velvet Revolution, Jasný returned to an independent Czech Republic and made "Return to Paradise Lost" (1999). He resided permanently in the United States and published his memoir, "Life and Cinema".
Awards and Recognition
Jasný received numerous awards:Best Director for "All My Compatriots" at the Cannes Film Festival (1969)
Technical Grand Prize for "All My Compatriots" at the Cannes Film Festival (1969)
Silver Seashell for "Ansichten eines Clowns" at the San Sebastian International Film Festival (1976)
