Milena Jelinek
Encyclopedia
Milena Jelinek (born 1935) is a Czech American
screenwriter
, playwright
and teacher. She wrote the screenplay for the film Zapomenuté světlo (Forgotten Light), which was awarded three Czech Lion
s in 1997. Her name is associated with the golden generation of Czech filmmakers, known as Czech New Wave. She was married to the late Frederick Jelinek
.
. The film director Ivan Passer
was one of her classmates, and the writer Milan Kundera
was her literature teacher. One of her early screenplays, written under her maiden name and titled Snadný život (An Easy Life), was filmed by Miloš Makovec and Jiří Brdečka. Already during her studies, she took part in various anti-communist
protests. According to her own words, the Czechoslovak president Antonín Novotný
in a speech against "unreliable writers" even listed her name as a "subversive person".
Frederick Jelinek emigrated from Czechoslovakia to the USA in 1949, however, in 1957 he visited Vienna
as a participant of a professional conference. During his stay, he decided to visit his old friends in Prague. He met and befriended Milena Tobolová during a meeting with the film director Miloš Forman
in a Prague's café. Gradually, they became close and eventually they decided to marry. However, their application for marriage was denied on several occasions by communist authorities. In 1960, Frederick Jelinek was proclaimed "persona non grata
" in Czechoslovakia and his planned visits were banned permanently. Coincidentally, the same year Tobolová received permission by the government to leave the country. Her son William Jelinek later claimed: "As an inaugural gift to Kennedy
, the Czechs released nine dissidents and one of them was my mother". In January, 1961, she left to the USA and shortly after that she married Jelinek.
In the USA, she gradually managed to find a place in the world of film, mainly thanks to another émigré, filmmaker František Daniel (Frank Daniel
). She already knew him from the school in Prague, and met him again at the American Film Institute
in Los Angeles
. In 1980, she joined him and began teaching screenwriting at the Columbia University
in New York
. At the University, she spent a major part of her professional career.
She is the author of the script for the play Adina, staged in 2007 in the Vinohrady Theatre
, Prague
. The play depicts the life story of the renowned Czech pre-War
actor Adina Mandlová
.
For the screenplay for the film Zapomenuté světlo (Forgotten Light), she found an inspiration in a short story by the Czech Catholic priest and writer Jakub Deml
. Forgotten Light received seven Czech Lion
nominations, including one for Best Screenplay, however, the Czech Film and Television Academy awarded the film three Lions for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Sound.
Czech American
Czech Americans are citizens of the United States who were born in, or who descended from, the territory of the historic Czech lands, , or succession states, now known as the Czech Republic...
screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and teacher. She wrote the screenplay for the film Zapomenuté světlo (Forgotten Light), which was awarded three Czech Lion
Czech Lion
The Czech Lion awards are annual awards that recognize accomplishments in filmmaking and television. It is the highest award of achievement in film awarded in the Czech Republic...
s in 1997. Her name is associated with the golden generation of Czech filmmakers, known as Czech New Wave. She was married to the late Frederick Jelinek
Frederick Jelinek
Frederick Jelinek was a Czech American researcher in information theory, automatic speech recognition, and natural language processing...
.
Biography
From 1955, she studied at the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in PragueFilm and TV School of The Academy of Performing Arts in Prague
The Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague or FAMU is one of the oldest film schools in Europe. Located in Prague, Czech Republic, FAMU was founded in 1946 as one of three branches of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague...
. The film director Ivan Passer
Ivan Passer
Ivan Passer is a Czech-born film director and screenwriter.A significant figure in the Czech New Wave of the mid-1960s, Passer worked closely with Miloš Forman on many of his films, and directed his first feature in 1965...
was one of her classmates, and the writer Milan Kundera
Milan Kundera
Milan Kundera , born 1 April 1929, is a writer of Czech origin who has lived in exile in France since 1975, where he became a naturalized citizen in 1981. He is best known as the author of The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, and The Joke. Kundera has written in...
was her literature teacher. One of her early screenplays, written under her maiden name and titled Snadný život (An Easy Life), was filmed by Miloš Makovec and Jiří Brdečka. Already during her studies, she took part in various anti-communist
Anti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
protests. According to her own words, the Czechoslovak president Antonín Novotný
Antonín Novotný
Antonín Novotný was General Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1953 to 1968, and also held the post of President of Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1968. He was born in Letňany, now part of Prague....
in a speech against "unreliable writers" even listed her name as a "subversive person".
Frederick Jelinek emigrated from Czechoslovakia to the USA in 1949, however, in 1957 he visited Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
as a participant of a professional conference. During his stay, he decided to visit his old friends in Prague. He met and befriended Milena Tobolová during a meeting with the film director Miloš Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...
in a Prague's café. Gradually, they became close and eventually they decided to marry. However, their application for marriage was denied on several occasions by communist authorities. In 1960, Frederick Jelinek was proclaimed "persona non grata
Persona non grata
Persona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
" in Czechoslovakia and his planned visits were banned permanently. Coincidentally, the same year Tobolová received permission by the government to leave the country. Her son William Jelinek later claimed: "As an inaugural gift to Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
, the Czechs released nine dissidents and one of them was my mother". In January, 1961, she left to the USA and shortly after that she married Jelinek.
In the USA, she gradually managed to find a place in the world of film, mainly thanks to another émigré, filmmaker František Daniel (Frank Daniel
Frank Daniel
Frank Daniel was a film director, producer and screenwriter born in Kolín, Czechoslovakia . He is known for developing the sequence paradigm of screenwriting.-Life:...
). She already knew him from the school in Prague, and met him again at the American Film Institute
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. In 1980, she joined him and began teaching screenwriting at the Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. At the University, she spent a major part of her professional career.
She is the author of the script for the play Adina, staged in 2007 in the Vinohrady Theatre
Vinohrady Theatre
Vinohrady Theatre is a theatre in Vinohrady, Prague.Construction began on February 27, 1905. It served as the Theatre of the Czechoslovak Army from autumn 1950 to January 1966). It contains a curtain painted by Vladimír Županský depicting a naked muse....
, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. The play depicts the life story of the renowned Czech pre-War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
actor Adina Mandlová
Adina Mandlová
Adina Mandlová was a Czech actress, sex-symbol of the 1930s and European movie star....
.
For the screenplay for the film Zapomenuté světlo (Forgotten Light), she found an inspiration in a short story by the Czech Catholic priest and writer Jakub Deml
Jakub Deml
Jakub Deml was a Czech Catholic priest and writer.-Life:Deml was born in Tasov near Třebíč, then Austria-Hungary, now Czech Republic. In 1902 he was ordained Roman Catholic priest, but in 1907-1908 and after 1909 he was pensioned, partly due to conflicts with his superiors. He became one of the...
. Forgotten Light received seven Czech Lion
Czech Lion
The Czech Lion awards are annual awards that recognize accomplishments in filmmaking and television. It is the highest award of achievement in film awarded in the Czech Republic...
nominations, including one for Best Screenplay, however, the Czech Film and Television Academy awarded the film three Lions for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Sound.