Dana Vávrová

Czech-German actress (born 1967)

Joseph Vilsmaier

(m. 1986)

ChildrenJosefina Vilsmaier, Janina Vilsmaier, Theresa VilsmaierRelativesHana Heřmánková (sister)

Dana Vávrová (German: [ˈdaː.na ˈva.vʁɔ.va] ^ⓘ; 9 August 1967 – 5 February 2009)^[1] was a Czech-German actress. She was one of the most popular German actresses throughout 1980s and early 1990s. After her role in Herbstmilch as Anna Wimschneider in 1989, she became a household name in Cinema of Germany.

Biography

Vávrová was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia and played her first main film role in Ať žijí duchové! (English: Long Live the Ghosts!) in 1976,^[2] having played a minor role in Jak se točí Rozmarýny. In 1979 she played a minor role in the television mini-series Arabela. In 1982, she played the main role as Janina David in the German television mini-series Ein Stück Himmel, and was awarded the Goldene Kamera, the Goldener Gong, and an Adolf Grimme Award.^[3] In this mini-series, Joseph Vilsmaier was one of the cinematographers. In parallel with her acting, she attended the Prague Conservatory from 1981 to 1985.^[4] After some further roles including the films Amadeus and Pan Tau, she played the main role of Anna Wimschneider in Herbstmilch (English: Autumn Milk) under the directorship of Joseph Vilsmaier, whom she had married in 1986. Together with Werner Stocker, she won the Bayerischer Filmpreis and the Deutscher Filmpreis for this role.

In addition to acting, she also directed films,^[5] the last one being to complete the Artur Brauner production The Last Train, (German: Der letzte Zug) after Joseph Vilsmaier, who had been directing, was involved in an accident.

Vávrová was awarded a Bundesverdienstkreuz.^[6]

The three daughters of Vávrová and Vilsmaier, Janina Vilsmaier, Theresa Vilsmaier and Josefina Vilsmaier, are also active as actresses. Vávrová's older sister, Hana Heřmánková [cs], is a television presenter in the Czech Republic.

Dana Vávrová died of cervical cancer in Munich, Germany on 5 February 2009.^[7] She was 41 years old.

Filmography

Actress

1977: Long Live Ghosts! (Director: Oldřich Lipský) - Leontýnka Brtník z Brtníku
1977: Jak se točí Rozmarýny (Director: Věra Plivová-Simková) - Zuzana
1979: Vražedné pochybnosti (Director: Ivo Toman) - Jana
1979: Kulový blesk (Director: Zdeněk Podskalský, Ladislav Smoljak)
1980: Koncert na konci léta (Director: František Vláčil)
1980: Brontosaurus (Director: Věra Plivová-Simková)
1980: Arabela (Director: Václav Vorlíček) - Little Red Riding Hood
1980: Svítalo celou noc
1982: Ein Stück Himmel (TV Mini Series, Director: Franz Peter Wirth)
1983: Kluk za dvě pětky (Director: Jaromír Borek) - Eliska
1984: Levé křídlo (Director: Jiří Hanibal) - Zdena
1984: Amadeus (Director: Miloš Forman)
1984: Bambinot (TV Mini Series, Director: Jaroslav Dudek)
1984: My všichni školou povinní (TV Mini Series, Director: Ludvík Ráža)
1988: Derrick (TV Series) - Bettina Rudolf
1988: Pan Tau (Director: Jindřich Polák) - Alena
1989: Autumn Milk (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Anna Wimschneider
1991: Rama dama [de] (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier)
1992: Der Nachbar (Director: Götz Spielmann) - Michaela
1993: Stalingrad (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Irina
1993: Rosenemil [de] (Director: Radu Gabrea) - Lissy
1995: Pizza Arrabiata (Director: Jochen Richter) - Laura
1995: Brother of Sleep (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Elsbeth
1997: Comedian Harmonists (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Ursula Bootz
2000: The Conception of My Younger Brother - Marie
2000: Bear on the Run [de] (Director: Dana Vávrová) - Briefträgerin
2002: The Damned - Michaela Holubová
2002: August der Glückliche (TV Movie, Director: Joseph Vilsmaier)
2003: Getting a Life (TV Movie, Director: Vivian Naefe) - Tatjana Berkhoff
2004: Der Vater meines Sohnes (TV Movie, Director: Dagmar Damek) - Stella Fröhlich
2004: Rock Crystal [de] (Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Susanne
2004: Grenzverkehr [de] (Director: Stefan Betz) - Helena
2006: Ein Hauptgewinn für Papa (TV Movie, Director: Bodo Fürneisen) - Anja Lohse
2007: Lamento [de] (Director: René Sydow, Daniel Hedfeld) - Christiane Reitz
2008: Ship of No Return: The Final Voyage of the Gustloff [de] (TV Movie, Director: Joseph Vilsmaier) - Lilli Simoneit (final film role)

Director

1995: Wia die Zeit vergeht (documentary film about the musician Hubert von Goisern)
1996: Hunger – Sehnsucht nach Liebe
2000: Bear on the Run [de]
2006: Der letzte Zug (directed by Dana Vávrová and Joseph Vilsmaier)

References

^ "Dana Vávrová". Prisma. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ "Dana Vavrova". Biography. Blockbuster Inc. Archived from the original on 9 February 2009. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ Schmidt, Ulrike (6 February 2009). "Eine glückliche Familie hat ihren Mittelpunkt verloren". tz online. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ "Dana Vávrová". filmportal - Biography. Deutsches Filminstitut - DIF e.V. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ "Dana Vávrová". Personal Info. German Films Service + Marketing GmbH. Archived from the original on 23 November 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ "Schauspielerin Dana Vávrová ist tot". Spiegel Online. 6 February 2009. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
^ "Der Kampf gegen den Krebs - by Michael Timm". www.tz.de. 6 February 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2016.