The 1983 epic The Millennial Bee secured Juraj Jakubisko’s status as a central figure in Czechoslovak cinema, selling out theaters for weeks and eventually earning the title of best film of the 1980s from local critics. This success arrived after years of intense political pressure that stalled his creative output during the normalized post-1968 landscape.
Early Career and Education
Born in 1938 in Kojšov, Jakubisko began his professional path as a secondary school photography teacher in Bratislava. In 1960, he relocated to Prague to study film direction at the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts, where he trained under Václav Wasserman. Following his 1965 graduation, he gained experience at the Laterna Magika theatre. His early experimental shorts quickly garnered international attention, leading to his 1967 feature debut, Crucial Years, which received both a FIPRESCI award and a Josef von Sternberg Award.
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Following the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion, Jakubisko faced significant political censorship. His film The Deserters and the Nomads won the Little Lion award in Venice, yet his subsequent projects, such as the 1970 production See You in Hell, Friends, remained shelved by state censors for two decades. During the 1970s, he shifted to documentaries, including The Construction of the Century, before returning to feature production with the 1979 film Build a House, Plant a Tree, which was banned for its anti-regime messaging.
Artistic Flourishing
The 1980s marked a productive era, highlighted by the 1985 children's film The Feather Fairy, which featured Italian actress Giulietta Masina. In 1990, his work Sitting on a Branch, Enjoying Myself received the Grand Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival. Following the 1993 dissolution of Czechoslovakia, he moved to Prague and established his own production company, Jakubisko Films, continuing his career with satirical works such as An Ambiguous Report About the End of the World.
The Bathory Production
In 2008, Jakubisko released Bathory, a historical project detailing the life of Elizabeth Báthory. It stood as his first English-language feature and was cited as the most expensive production in the history of Czech and Slovak cinema. Despite an attempted blackmail plot regarding a stolen copy of the film by former production staff, the movie premiered at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival and eventually became recognized as the most successful film in Slovak history.
Fast facts
- Born: 1938, Kojšov
- Died: 2023, Prague
- Alma mater: FAMU, Prague
- Best Slovak Director of the 20th century: 2000
- Czech Medal of Merit, 1st class: 2016
- Cross of Pribina class II: 2003
- Merited Artist of Czechoslovakia: 1988
- Primary occupations: Director, screenwriter, cinematographer
Questions readers ask
What was the result of the attempted blackmail against the Bathory production?
The two former production staff members involved were apprehended, convicted, and received suspended sentences for attempted blackmail.
Did Jakubisko hold any academic positions?
Yes, he was appointed as a lecturer at his alma mater, the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, in 2001.
Achievements
- Worked as film director, screenwriter and camera operator
