Milena Dravić ( sr-Cyrl, Милена Дравић, ; 5 October 1940 – 14 October 2018) was a Yugoslav and Serbian film, television and theatre actress.

Biography

Born in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...

, Dravić became involved with

performing arts The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perfo ...

at the age of four via her parents enrolling her in a dance program. She would later switch to

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...

. In 1959, still a high school student, Dravić got spotted by director

František Čáp František Čáp (7 December 1913 – 12 January 1972), also known as Franz Cap in Germany, was a Czech and later a Yugoslav film director and screenwriter. He directed 32 films between 1939 and 1970. Having created Slovene film classics such as ...

who approached the eighteen-year-old about being in his film ''Vrata ostaju otvorena'' after seeing her on the cover of a youth magazine in a ballet dancers' group photo. After appearing in a few more films, she decided to pursue acting full-time and to that end successfully enrolled at the Academy of Theatre Arts (APU) within the Arts Academy in Belgrade. Her big break came in 1962 in

Branko Bauer Branko Bauer (18 February 1921 – 11 April 2002) was a Croatian film director. He is considered to be the leading figure of classical narrative cinema in Croatian and Yugoslav cinema of the 1950s. Early life Bauer became interested in cine ...

's ''Prekobrojna'' for which she won the

Golden Arena for Best Actress The following is a list of winners of the Golden Arena for Best Actress at the Pula Film Festival. List of winners Yugoslav Film Awards (1955–90) Croatian Film Awards (1990–present) Footnotes :A. Although the festival was opened ...

(Yugoslav equivalent of an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

). The memorable role, as well as the much-publicized accolade, propelled her to becoming Yugoslavia's first and arguably biggest female movie star. She was a recipient of five Silver arenas (for supporting actress roles) and 2 Golden arenas (for leading actress roles). Milena Dravić's career was long, prolific, and versatile. She was memorable and believable, whether as the

tragic heroine A tragic hero is the protagonist of a tragedy. In his '' Poetics'', Aristotle records the descriptions of the tragic hero to the playwright and strictly defines the place that the tragic hero must play and the kind of man he must be. Aristotle ...

in state-sponsored World War II epics, the eccentric protagonist of experimental arthouse films like '' WR: Mysteries of the Organism'' or in romantic comedies. She especially excelled in the latter during the 1970s and 1980s. She won the Cannes Best Supporting Actress Award in 1980 for '' Special Treatment''. For her roles and contributions to domestic

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...

, she received the prestigious

Pavle Vujisić Pavle (Macedonian and sr-cyr, Павле; ka, პავლე) is a Serbian, Macedonian, Croatian and Georgian male given name corresponding to English Paul; the name is of biblical origin (cf. Saint Paul). People known mononymously as Pavle incl ...

Award in August 1994. On 15 December 2017 she was honored with the prestigious

Dobričin prsten The Dobričin prsten award ( sr-Cyrl, Добричин прстен) is the life-achievement award for theatrical acting, considered the most distinguished one in the Serbian theater. The name of the award (''Ring of Dobrica'') refers to the gol ...

lifetime achievement award in Belgrade.

Personal life

Milena Dravić was married three times. Her third husband was the prominent Serbian actor

Dragan Nikolić Dragoslav "Dragan" Nikolić ( sr-cyr, Драгослав Драган Николић, ; 20 August 1943 – 11 March 2016) was a Yugoslav and later, Serbian actor. Nikolić studied at Dramatic Arts Academy in Belgrade. In 1967 he starred in the ...

, with whom she had co-hosted the popular 1970s television program ''Obraz uz obraz''.

Death

She died on 14 October 2018, after a long battle with illness.

Selected filmography

*''Vrata ostaju otvorena'' (1959) – Marija ... Petrova sestra *''Dilizansa snova'' (1960) – Evica *''Zajednicki stan'' (1960) – Ljubica *''Bolje je umeti'' (1960) – Jola *'' The First Fires'' (1961) – Hajra *''Leto je krivo za sve'' (1961) – Natalija *'' Kozara'' (1962) – Milja *''Prekobrojna'' (1962) – Ranka *''Pesceni grad'' (1962) – Milena *''Radopolje'' (1963) – Mrvica *''

Destination Death ''Destination Death'' (german: Herrenpartie, sr, Мушки излет, translit=Muški izlet) is a 1964 West German-Yugoslavian war film directed by Wolfgang Staudte. It was entered into the 14th Berlin International Film Festival. Cast * Gö ...

'' (1964) – Seja *''Sluzbeni polozaj'' (1964) – Zora *''Lito vilovito'' (1964) – Mare *''Narodni poslanik'' (1964) – Danica *'' Man is Not a Bird'' (1965) – Rajka *''Devojka'' (1965) – Devojka *''Klakson'' (1965) – Jana *''Covik od svita'' (1965) – Visnja *'' The Camp Followers'' (1965) – Aspasia Anastasiou *''

Rondo The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period. Etymology The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round". Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...

'' (1966) – Neda * (1966) – Momata *'' Looking Into the Eyes of the Sun'' (1966) *''Sticenik'' (1966) – Herself *''Zgodba ki je ni'' (1967) – Uciteljica *''Nemirni'' (1967) – Zorica *'' The Morning'' (1967) – Aleksandra *''Dim'' (1967) – Devojka *''Hasanaginica'' (1967) – Hasanaginica *''Sirota Marija'' (1968) – Marija *''Sedmina'' (1969) – Filomena *''Zaseda'' (1969) – Milica *''Horoskop'' (1969) – Milka *''Cross Country'' (1969) – Jovana *'' The Battle of Neretva'' (1969) – Nada *''Biciklisti'' (1970) – Sara *'' Touha zvaná Anada'' (1971) – Zuzka *'' W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism'' (1971) – Milena *'' The Role of My Family in the Revolution'' (1971) – Devojka * (1971) – Velika *''Ko pride lev'' (1972) – Mihaela *'' The Battle of Sutjeska'' (1973) – Vera *''Pjegava djevojka'' (1973) – Katy * (1973) – Veronika Djakovic *''Deps'' (1974) – Depsova djevojka Janja *''

A Performance of Hamlet in the Village of Mrdusa Donja ''A Performance of Hamlet in the Village of Mrdusa Donja'' ( sh, Predstava Hamleta u selu Mrduša Donja) is a 1973 Yugoslav drama film directed by Krsto Papić, and based on Ivo Brešan's 1971 play of the same name.Daniel J. Goulding ''Liberate ...

'' (1974) – Andja / Ofelija *''Strah'' (1974) – Karolina *''Pavle Pavlovic'' (1975) – Adela *''Povratak otpisanih'' (1976) – Lula Mitricevic *''Group Portrait with a Lady'' (1977) – Schwester Klementine *''Ljubavni zivot Budimira Trajkovica'' (1977) – Lepa Trajkovic *''Tamo i natrag'' (1978) – Rada Jovanovic *''Kvar'' (1978) – Sasina ljubavnica *''Trener'' (1978) – Petrova bivsa zena *''Povratak'' (1979) – Roza *'' Special Treatment'' (1980) – Kaca *''Osam kila srece'' (1980) *''Rad na odredjeno vreme'' (1980) – Svetlana *''Snovi, zivot, smrt Filipa Filipovica'' (1980) *''Sesta brzina'' (1981) – Gvozdenka *''Laf u srcu'' (1981) – Savina zena * (1982) – Sofija Arandjelovic *''Moj tata na odredjeno vreme'' (1982) – Svetlana *''Covek sa cetiri noge'' (1983) – Nada Jovanovic *''Secerna vodica'' (1983) – Ana *''Una'' (1984) – Miselova zena *'' Horvat’s Choice'' (1985) – Marijana Margitic *''Nije lako sa muskarcima'' (1985) – Gordana Diklic *'' Anticasanova'' (1985) – Asja *''Na istarski nacin'' (1985) *''Osveta'' (1986) – Nada Pekar *''Razvod na odredjeno vreme'' (1986) – Svetlana Milanovic *''Lijepe zene prolaze kroz grad'' (1986) – Rahela *''Dogodilo se na danasnji dan'' (1987) – Nastavnica *''Cavka'' (1988) – Nastavnica *'' The Dark Side of the Sun'' (1988) – Mother *''Spijun na stiklama'' (1988) – Livadinka Kukuric *''Najbolji'' (1989) – Ninkova majka *''

Battle of Kosovo The Battle of Kosovo ( tr, Kosova Savaşı; sr, Косовска битка) took place on 15 June 1389 between an army led by the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and an invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan ...

'' (1989) – Velislava *''Cudna noc'' (1990) *''Sekula se opet zeni'' (1991) – Sojka *''Policajac sa Petlovog brda'' (1992) – Vera *''Treca sreca'' (1995) – Prorocica Antilopa *'' Three Summer Days'' (1997) – Kaja *'' Cabaret Balkan'' (1998) – The Lady on the Bus with the Hat and Fox Stole *''

Sky Hook ''Sky Hook'' was a science fiction fanzine published by Redd Boggs from 1948 to 1957. It was nominated for the 1954 Retro-Hugo for Best Fanzine. Contributors included Poul Anderson, James Blish, Philip Jose Farmer, Dean Grennell, David Kell ...

'' (2000) – Danka *''Normalni ljudi'' (2001) – Tomina tetka *''

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning ...

'' (2001) – Gospodja Jeftic *'' Zona Zamfirova'' (2002) – Tasana *''Ledina'' (2003) – Zorica *''Sjaj u ocima'' (2003) – Vlasnica agencije *''Lost and Found'' (2005) – Vera (segment "Fabulous Vera") *''Agi i Ema'' (2007) – Ema *'' Crazy, Confused, Normal'' (2007–2015, TV Series) – Spomenka Vihorec *'' Love and Other Crimes'' (2008) – Majka *'' St. George Shoots the Dragon'' (2009) – Tetka Slavka *'' The village is burning, and the grandmother is combing her hair'' (2009, TV Series) – Direktorka banke

References

External links

*
Complete filmography
at the Complete Index to World Film * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dravic, Milena 1940 births 2018 deaths Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery Actresses from Belgrade Serbian film actresses Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress winners Golden Arena winners Laureates of the Ring of Dobrica Žanka Stokić award winners