Jonas Mekas
Jonas Mekas ( born December 24, 1922 in Semeniskiai at Biržai, Lithuania) is a Lithuanian film director, writer and curator. He was often called " the godfather of American avant-garde cinema ."
Life and work
In 1944 Mekas and his younger brother Adolfas were imprisoned by the Nazis and locked for eight months in a labor camp in Elmshorn. Due to the Soviet occupation he could not return to Lithuania and was considered homeless " displaced person " after the war. He found shelter in displaced persons camps in Wiesbaden and Kassel. From 1946 to 1948, Mekas studied philosophy at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The end of 1949, he emigrated with his brother to the United States, where he settled in Williamsburg, New York. Shortly after his arrival, Mekas bought a 16 mm camera from Bolex and began to film moments of his life. At events such as Amos Vogel cinema 16 he discovered the avant-garde film and began his own films from 1953 to turn. Soon Mekas was one of the key figures of the New American Cinema.
He founded the journal Film Culture (1954-1996), considered the authoritative institution for the development of the American auteur cinema today. Since 1958, he wrote film reviews for the New York City magazine The Village Voice in his column Movie Journal. In 1962 he founded with Emile de Antonio, the independent film - makers ' Cooperative, an association freelance experimental filmmaker, and in 1964 its affiliated Film-Makers ' Cinematheque as a forum for the performance of their films. From it was 1970, the project also founded by Mekas Anthology Film Archives forth, which houses the world's largest collection of avant-garde cinema. He has collaborated with artists such as Andy Warhol, Nico, Yoko Ono, John Lennon, Salvador Dali and his compatriot George Maciunas.
Although his narrative and his documentaries are highly valued, Mekas is especially known for his diary films, including Walden (1969 ), Lost, Lost, Lost ( 1975), Reminiscences of a Voyage to Lithuania ( 1972), and Zefiro Torna (1992). In 2000 came a four-hour diary film entitled As I Was Moving Ahead, Occasionally I Saw letter Glimpses of Beauty out the Mekas compiled from the material he had recorded in about 30 years ( 1970-1999 ) with his Bolex.
2007 Mekas was honored with the Special Award to Roswitha Haftman price. In 2008 he was awarded by President Heinz Fischer, the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art. In 2013 he was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Mekas lives and works in New York City.
In Lithuania, Mekas is highly regarded as a poet.
Quote
"First I must say that I am not a very thoughtful person. People think too much. And they take themselves too seriously. I live without a plan. My biggest discovery was to understand that I need to do anything: All I have to do is to admit that things can happen ... do not stand in their way. I'm not sure if I have influenced other filmmakers or artists. My role was that of a midwife, the fragile, newborn essence helps to survive the first steps in this world. My role was that of a protector, the helpless newborns protects against the attacks of the establishment. To take itself seriously, whether in art or in life, is nonsensical. Art or life without humor is not worth living. "
Source: revolver. Journal of Film, Issue 12, 2005