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Franjo Ledić (; 12 March 1892 – 26 September 1981) was a Yugoslav
expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
film director, producer and screenwriter from
Derventa Derventa ( sr-cyrl, Дервента) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the Posavina region, northwest of the city of Doboj. As of 2013, the town has a total of 11,631 inhabitants, while the municipality has ...
, one of the first notable Croatian film authors and self-proclaimed "first Yugoslav film director". He is best known for founding "Ocean-film" (later known as
Jadran film Jadran Film is a film production studio and distribution company founded in 1946 in Zagreb, Croatia. In the period between the early 1960s and late 1980s Jadran Film was one of the biggest and most notable film studios in Central Europe, with som ...
), the first film studio in Croatia, and attempting to build the "Yugoslav Hollywood" in Zagreb in the 1920s. He published the first Croatian book and journal about film. Ledić also received attention as a Croatian
myth Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...
ologist, authoring a total of three popular self-published works on
Slavic paganism Slavic paganism, Slavic mythology, or Slavic religion refer to the religious beliefs, myths, and ritual practices of the Slavs before Christianisation, which occurred at various stages between the 8th and the 13th century. The South Slavs, who ...
. These works were later highly criticized by Croatian
ethnologists Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). Scien ...
, who judged Ledić's reconstructions of the 'Croatian pantheon' to be "romanticized", "uncritical" and "arbitrary", pointing also to a lack of verifiable sources in his works.


Biography


Early life and Berlin

Ledić was born in Derventa,
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
, in 1892. He graduated from a public school and travelled across Europe between the years 1907 and 1910. In 1911 he settled in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
, and started to work various jobs in
Oskar Messter Oskar Messter (21 November 1866 – 6 December 1943) was a German Reich, German inventor and film tycoon in the early years of film, cinema. His firm Messter Film was one of the dominant German producers before the rise of Universum Film AG, ...
's productions from 1912: an
extra Extra, Xtra, or The Extra may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * The Extra (1962 film), ''The Extra'' (1962 film), a Mexican film * The Extra (2005 film), ''The Extra'' (2005 film), an Australian film Literature * Extra (newspaper), ...
,
set designer Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including plays and musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, where it may be referred to as prod ...
,
make-up artist A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and Prosthetic makeup, prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other simil ...
, assistant camera operator etc. During his stay in Berlin, after shooting several short films in the late 1910s, he screenwrote and acted as assistant director for
Ernst Lubitsch Ernst Lubitsch (; ; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; a ...
's ''Sumurun'' and ''Anna Boleyn'', co-directed, produced and screenwrote ("Angelo: The Mystery of Dragontown") with
Robert Leffler Robert Leffler (9 January 1866 – 15 March 1940) was a German actor, film director and opera singer (bass). Selected filmography * '' The Haunted Castle'' (1921) * '' The Fear of Women'' (1921) * '' Rose of the Asphalt Streets'' (1922) * '' A ...
, and directed his first successful movie, ''Cornelie Arendt.'' After this, he founded the first iteration of his movie company Ocean-film in Berlin, which got him praise from the journals ("Film Courier") and ("Central Paper for the Film Industry"). The journals described Ledić as a "Turk" and orientalist whose goal it was to export German film to the
Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
and the
Balkan The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
region.


Angelo

''Angelo'' was a 70-minute long movie in six acts authored after Ledić's synonymous novel, and the first movie produced by Ocean-film. The film was in production for two years before its premiere. In November 1919, it went on to be aggressively marketed and widely reported on in German newspapers, several months ahead of the Berlin premiere, which coincided with the showing of The Cabinet of Dr. Calligari. In December, one month prior to the screening, advertisements announced the cast, with Leffler as director (though this would be left out in the 1921 Croatian premiere) and starring Lina Salten and Ernst Dernburg. The movie premiered on 13 February 1920 and by then, advertising and reports about the movie had already slowed down significantly, most likely due to a lack of funds. The movie ultimately received mixed reviews by critics, but still got successful showings in other countries, such as the US, Czechia, Italy and a few more. For a showing held one year after the premiere, the title had been changed to ("A Horrible Night at Castle Dragontown"). Preserved sequences of the film were bought by the Yugoslav Film Archive in the 1960s, and are now kept at the Croatian Film Archive. To this day, the sequences were not able to be fully reconstructed, but 38 seconds of the movie and several shots have been preserved.


Return to Yugoslavia

Ledić moved to Italy in 1921, where he stayed until 1925 and directed several short films. He was ultimately dissatisfied with this and moved again to Zagreb, Croatia, where he founded Ocean-film again, this time as a Yugoslav company. Ledić then bought land on Horvaćanska street, where he built a film studio with the support of Oktavijan Miletić. The studio was a complex in the
secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...
ist style, nicknamed "Yugoslav Hollywood". Not long after, the company was renamed to Jadran-film, and Ledić went on to publish the first Croatian book on film (, "Film. Who Wants to Work in Film?", 1925) and the first Croatian film journal (, "National Art of Film", 1926), containing poems dedicated to himself and details on shooting his films. He began filming and advertising ("Gypsy Blood – The Balkan Benefactor"), which was remade into the short film (1927) due to financial issues. Finances eventually forced him to sell his studio (which became known as "Vila Kiseljak", after its later owner's family). After another failure in the box office, the movie ("The Two of Them") by Đuka Berkeš, Ledić was briefly imprisoned as he was unable able to pay off his debts.


WWII and SFR Yugoslavia

Having been released from prison, Ledić continued publishing his second film journal ("The Bell", 1926) and worked as a traveling reporter within the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...
. During the regime of the
Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...
, he worked for the ("State Movie Institute", popularly known as "Croatia film") as a news camera operator. With the end of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Ledić was
interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...
by the Yugoslav authorities and Jadran-film was seized by the state. Ledić continued to publish written works in the SFR Yugoslavia, poems and prose themed around his home region of Derventa. His late
publicist A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a company, a brand, or public figure – especially a celebrity – or for work or a project such as a book, film, or album. Publicists are public relations specialists wh ...
works, most notably his self-published compilations titled ("Mythology of the Slavs", 1969–1970), became popular in Croatia as sources on ancient
Slavic paganism Slavic paganism, Slavic mythology, or Slavic religion refer to the religious beliefs, myths, and ritual practices of the Slavs before Christianisation, which occurred at various stages between the 8th and the 13th century. The South Slavs, who ...
. Today, however, Croatian ethnologists consider them to be artefacts of the past that are, among other similar works, fundamentally unverifiable. Ethnologist Lidija Bajuk notes that Ledić's reconstruction of the 'Croatian pantheon', based largely on the work of psychologist Nikola Sučić, is "arbitrary and unverifiable", and she includes Ledić (as well as Sučić) on the list of authors whose work she believes to be "uncritical ponderings". Tea Škokić, another ethnology
doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...
, believes that Ledić's interpretations of the pantheon are romanticized, and notes how he does not cite any sources for his claims. He passed away on September 26, 1981, and was buried on Miroševac Cemetery in Dubrava, Zagreb.


Works


Film

* ("Fighting the Sun", short film in four acts, 1918) * ("Suicide Club", short film in two acts, 1918) * ("The End of the World", short film in two acts, 1918) * ''Cornelie Arendt'' (short film, 1919) * (''Angelo. Misterij Zmajgrada''; "Angelo: The Mystery of Dragontown",
feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature recognition, could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (machine learning), in statistics: individual measurable properties of the phenome ...
in six acts, 1920) ** retitled in 1921: ("A Horrible Night at Castle Dragontown") * ("Celebration of the Millenial Anniversary of the Kingdom of Croatia", documentary, 1925) * ("Third
Sokol Sokol, Sokół or SOKOL may refer to: Sports * Sokol movement, a Pan-Slavic physical education movement, and its various incarnations: ** Czech Sokol movement, the original one ** Polish Sokół movement ** Russian Sokol movement ** Sokol mov ...
Slet in Zagreb", 1925) * ("The Bell", 1926–1939) * ("Gypsy Blood – The Balkan Benefactor", advertisement, 1927) ** remade into (short film, 1927) * & ("Croatia in Word and Image" & "Croatian Weekly News", 1941–1945)


Books

* (1920) * ("Film. Who Wants to Work in Film?", 1925) * ("National Art of Film", 1926) * ("A Tale of Grandfather Ledonja", 1953) * ("Grandfather's Wedding", 1955) * ("Tales from the History of Derventa", 1958) * ("Folk Philosophy in Proverbs about Wolves", 1960) * ("Mythology of the Slavs", 1969–1970) * ("Legends of Giants", 1973–1974)


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * {{Citation , last=Rafaelić , first=Daniel , title=Franjo Ledić: A Forgotten Pioneer of German Expressionism , date=2016 , work=Expressionism in the Cinema , pages=65–76 , editor-last=Rhodes , editor-first=Gary D. , url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/expressionism-in-the-cinema/franjo-ledic-a-forgotten-pioneer-of-german-expressionism/34B6E4BFFC9ED5470727E061E0140450 , access-date=5 August 2024 , publisher=Edinburgh University Press , isbn=978-1-4744-0326-9 , editor2-last=Brill , editor2-first=Olaf , via= CambridgeCore


External links


Screening of the preserved segments of ''Angelo''
YouTube Yugoslav film directors Yugoslav film producers People from Derventa German film directors Film directors from Austria-Hungary