Zvonimir Berković (1 August 1928 – 9 June 2009) was a

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

and

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

. Berković had studied film directing at the Zagreb Academy of Drama Arts. His screenwriting career began in the mid-1950s, his most notable work being Nikola Tanhofer's 1958 film '' H-8'', for which he

co-authored Collaborative writing is a procedure in which two or more persons work together on a text of some kind (e.g., academic papers, reports, creative writing, projects, and business proposals). It is often the norm, rather than the exception, in many ac ...

the

screenplay A screenplay, or script, is a written work produced for a film, television show (also known as a '' teleplay''), or video game by screenwriters (cf. ''stage play''). Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of w ...

with Tomislav Butorac. He had his directing debut with the 1962 documentary short ''My Flat'' (''Moj stan''), which offered an ironic portrayal of living standards in the socialist-style prefabricated housing projects. The film earned him a Special Jury Prize at the 1963

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

. His feature directing debut was the 1966 film ''

Rondo The rondo or rondeau is a musical form that contains a principal theme (music), theme (sometimes called the "refrain") which alternates with one or more contrasting themes (generally called "episodes", but also referred to as "digressions" or "c ...

'', which starred acclaimed Yugoslav actors

Relja Bašić Relja Bašić (14 February 1930 – 7 April 2017) was a Croatian actor. With a career that lasted more than half a century, he is considered one of the most prolific performers of that country. Biography Bašić was born on 14 February 1930 i ...

, Milena Dravić and

Stevo Žigon Štefan "Stevo" Žigon ( sr-cyr, Стево Жигон; 8 December 1926 – 28 December 2005) was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav actor, theatre director, and writer. Biography His origins were primarily Italian. He was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, then ...

, and which is today regarded as a classic of Yugoslav and Croatian cinema. After ''Rondo'', Berković directed a handful of films through the 1970s and 1980s and his only other notable work was the 1993 film '' Countess Dora'' (''Kontesa Dora''), which portrayed an episode in the life of 19th-century Croatian composer

Dora Pejačević Countess Maria Theodora Paulina "Dora" Pejačević (; 10 September 1885 – 5 March 1923) was a Croats, Croatian composer, pianist and violinist and one of the first composers to introduce the orchestral song to Croatian music. Her Symphony in F- ...

and which starred Alma Prica and

Rade Šerbedžija Rade Šerbedžija ( sr-Cyrl, Раде Шербеџија, ; born 27 July 1946) is a Croatian actor, director and musician. He is known for his portrayals of imposing figures on both sides of the law. He was one of the best known Yugoslav actors ...

. The film won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film at the 1993

Pula Film Festival Pula Film Festival () is an annual Croatian film festival, established in 1954. It is held in a Roman amphitheater known as the Pula Arena. Pula Film Festival is the oldest Croatian film festival and is usually held in the summer, in July or Aug ...

. In the 1990s Berković stopped making films and turned to teaching at the Zagreb Academy of Drama Arts, and was also a notable columnist writing music, theatre and film reviews for '' Globus'', a popular current affairs weekly. He was also a longtime head of

dramaturgy Dramaturgy is the study of dramatic composition and the representation of the main elements of drama on the stage. The role of a dramaturg in the field of modern dramaturgy is to help realize the multifaceted world of the play for a production u ...

at the Zagreb-based film production company Jadran Film.

Filmography

* ''

'' (1966) * '' The Scene of the Crash'' (''Putovanje na mjesto nesreće'', 1971) * '' Love Letters with Intent'' (''Ljubavna pisma s predumišljajem'', 1985) * '' Countess Dora'' (''Kontesa Dora'', 1993)

References

External links

*
Zvonimir Berković
at

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Zvonimir Berković biography
at Filmski-Programi.hr
Nikad ispričana priča Zvonimira Berkovića
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berkovic, Zvonimir 1928 births 2009 deaths Film people from Belgrade Croatian film directors Croatian screenwriters Croatian columnists Golden Arena winners Vladimir Nazor Award winners Academy of Dramatic Art, University of Zagreb alumni Academic staff of the University of Zagreb Yugoslav film directors 20th-century screenwriters Croats of Serbia