The diary reported on the death Rightto whom her daughter Klaudie Hepnerová told her.
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Eva Zaoralová was an acclaimed film theorist, publicist and translator. For more than a quarter of a century, she worked together with Jiří Bartoška in the management of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, together making him one of the most prestigious European film festivals, to which she greatly contributed her erudition and nobility.
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In 1994, when the foundation was founded to organize the 29th Karlovy Vary Parade, Zaoralová became its leader. Together with Jiří Bartoška and other collaborators, they created a modern form of the festival, in which Zaoralová, with her infallible instinct for choosing quality films, had a lion’s share. She also wrote a book about the history of this festival, which she presented at its 50th year. She added facts, observations, stories and, most importantly, objective information to the publication. She has been going to Vary since the early 1970s as a journalist.
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Until 2010, Zaoralová was the artistic director of the Karlovy Vary show. She then handed over her position to Karel Och, but as an artistic advisor she remained an integral part of the team that was formed under her leadership. In other years, she gave shape with her infallible taste, knowledge of Italian and French cinema in particular, and exceptional personal contacts.
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“It never occurred to me that one day I would become a ‘celebrity’ in a sense: for several years now, strangers have sometimes approached me on the street or on the tram, and everyone, always politely and kindly, thanked me for what I was. she did for the festival, “Zaoralová said in an interview, which also enjoyed the constant interest of the media. She gave hundreds of interviews and found herself in hundreds of photographs, often in the company of great acting stars and world film celebrities.
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“I can’t pretend I’m not happy, but on the other hand I’m a little ashamed, because the fact that the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is built really high in the Czech Republic and abroad today, I don’t just have the credit, but our whole team,” she added.
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From interpreting to film
She was born Eva Šebánková on November 28, 1932 in Prague in the family of architect Jan Šebánek and his wife Marie Šebánková, and her maternal grandfather, Viktorin Šulc, was an architect by profession. Originally she studied Czech and French at Charles University (later she also added Italian), at first she worked as an interpreter.
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Her second husband, film historian Ivo Hepner, began leading her to screenings at FAMU, and so her love of film was born. At first she translated professional texts from Italian and French, later she began to write about the film herself.
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Whenever the situation allowed, Zaoral also went to film festivals. At festivals in San Remo, Bergamo, Venice and Cannes, thanks to her professional and naturally noble performance, she succeeded in promoting Czechoslovak film and making rich contacts, which she later used in Karlovy Vary.
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Zaoralová has been the editor of Film a doba magazine since the late 1960s, and its editor-in-chief for several years. Dozens of her translations, author articles and publications devoted mainly to French and Italian film have been published in books or magazines. She has also participated in translations of a number of well-known films, mainly from Italian and French. In addition to the Karlovy Vary festival, she left a mark on other film festivals, sat on the juries of festivals in Venice, Berlin, Cannes, Mannheim and Wiesbaden, and as a journalist she also participated in the work of the International Film Press Federation.
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The first lady of Czech film criticism was married three times, her husbands were chemist Jan König, film historian Ivo Hepner and publicist, screenwriter and director Zdeněk Zaoral.
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For her work she was awarded the Medal of Merit in 2010, in 2012 she received the insignia of an officer of the French Order of Arts and Literature, and at the Cannes IFF she received a plaque for many years of journalistic activity. Years ago, the Karlovy Vary Film Festival also remembered her for her artistic contribution, and in 2017 she won the Czech Lion for her extraordinary contribution to Czech cinema.
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