Slavoljub "Slavko" Vorkapić (Serbian Cyrillic: Славољуб
"Славко" Ð'оркапић; March 17, 1894 â€" October 20, 1976),
known in English as Slavko Vorkapich, was a Serbian-born Hollywood
montagist, an independent cinematic artist, chair of USC School of
Cinematic Arts, chair of the Belgrade Film and Theatre Academy,
painter, and illustrator. He was a prominent figure of modern
cinematography and motion picture film art during the early and
mid-20th century and was a cinema theorist and lecturer.Slavoljub
Vorkapić was born on March 17, 1894, in the small village of Dobrinci
near Ruma in the Srem region, at the time part of the Kingdom of
Croatia and Slavonia of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Serbia). His
father Petar, the town clerk, insisted that young Slavko should be
well-educated. After finishing his primary education, he became a
student in a well-known regional high-school in the nearby town of
Sremska Mitrovica, where he made his first steps in art and drawing.
(Mileva Marić-Einstein, the first wife and work associate of Albert
Einstein went to the same high school.) He continued his high-school
education in Zemun and later in the famous Art School in Belgrade.
With a scholarship received from Matica srpska, Serbia's highest
cultural and scientific institution at the time, Vorkapić went to
Budapest, Hungary, where he studied art. At the beginning of World War
I, he immediately returned to his homeland where, with the country
besieged on all sides, he survived the tragic Serbian retreat across
Albania in order to reach Allied positions in Greece. From there he
sailed to Italy, from where he reached France. He managed to enter Art
Academy in Paris but soon after moved to Montparnasse among other
Avant-garde artists. He took part in the 1917 and 1919 collective
painter exhibits.Slavko Vorkapich's dream to go to the United States
was fulfilled in 1920. For a short time, he lived in New York City.
Then, for almost a year, he roamed the country nearly homeless, until
his arrival in Hollywood in July 1921. Although he started his motion
picture career as a painter and an actor, he became best known as a
montagist, special effects expert, cinematic artist, cinema teacher,
editor, and became one of the most respected cinematic filmmakers in
the period between the two World Wars. Vorkapić made a great number
of cinematic documentaries and lyrical purely cinematic short-length
movies. He co-wrote the screenplay for Johann the Coffinmaker (1927),
a 27-minute experimental film directed by Robert Florey that involved
a lot of trick photographic effects.Vorkapić co-directed the
experimental black and white short motion-picture The Life and Death
of 9413: a Hollywood Extra (1928) with Robert Florey, and 2 beautiful
and exciting visual tone poems, Moods of the Sea (1941) and Forest
Murmurs (1947) with his Hollywood colleague, the Hungarian-born
montagist and cinematic filmmaker John Hoffman (1904â€"1980).
"Славко" Ð'оркапић; March 17, 1894 â€" October 20, 1976),
known in English as Slavko Vorkapich, was a Serbian-born Hollywood
montagist, an independent cinematic artist, chair of USC School of
Cinematic Arts, chair of the Belgrade Film and Theatre Academy,
painter, and illustrator. He was a prominent figure of modern
cinematography and motion picture film art during the early and
mid-20th century and was a cinema theorist and lecturer.Slavoljub
Vorkapić was born on March 17, 1894, in the small village of Dobrinci
near Ruma in the Srem region, at the time part of the Kingdom of
Croatia and Slavonia of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Serbia). His
father Petar, the town clerk, insisted that young Slavko should be
well-educated. After finishing his primary education, he became a
student in a well-known regional high-school in the nearby town of
Sremska Mitrovica, where he made his first steps in art and drawing.
(Mileva Marić-Einstein, the first wife and work associate of Albert
Einstein went to the same high school.) He continued his high-school
education in Zemun and later in the famous Art School in Belgrade.
With a scholarship received from Matica srpska, Serbia's highest
cultural and scientific institution at the time, Vorkapić went to
Budapest, Hungary, where he studied art. At the beginning of World War
I, he immediately returned to his homeland where, with the country
besieged on all sides, he survived the tragic Serbian retreat across
Albania in order to reach Allied positions in Greece. From there he
sailed to Italy, from where he reached France. He managed to enter Art
Academy in Paris but soon after moved to Montparnasse among other
Avant-garde artists. He took part in the 1917 and 1919 collective
painter exhibits.Slavko Vorkapich's dream to go to the United States
was fulfilled in 1920. For a short time, he lived in New York City.
Then, for almost a year, he roamed the country nearly homeless, until
his arrival in Hollywood in July 1921. Although he started his motion
picture career as a painter and an actor, he became best known as a
montagist, special effects expert, cinematic artist, cinema teacher,
editor, and became one of the most respected cinematic filmmakers in
the period between the two World Wars. Vorkapić made a great number
of cinematic documentaries and lyrical purely cinematic short-length
movies. He co-wrote the screenplay for Johann the Coffinmaker (1927),
a 27-minute experimental film directed by Robert Florey that involved
a lot of trick photographic effects.Vorkapić co-directed the
experimental black and white short motion-picture The Life and Death
of 9413: a Hollywood Extra (1928) with Robert Florey, and 2 beautiful
and exciting visual tone poems, Moods of the Sea (1941) and Forest
Murmurs (1947) with his Hollywood colleague, the Hungarian-born
montagist and cinematic filmmaker John Hoffman (1904â€"1980).
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