Jerzy Stuhr
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jerzy Stuhr (born April 18, 1947 in Kraków) is one of the most popular Polish actors. He also works as a screenplay writer, film director, and drama professor.
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[edit] Life and career
Having obtained a degree in Polish literature from the Jagiellonian University in 1970, Stuhr spent the next two years studying acting at the Kraków National Drama School (Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Teatralna/PWST), with which he retained close ties ever since.
From the early 1970s, Stuhr appeared in Polish theatre and screen productions, making his debut with the role of Beelzebub in Adam Mickiewicz's Dziady.
Having met film director Krzysztof Kieślowski in the mid-1970s, he continued to work with him until Kieślowski's death in 1996. To an international audience, Stuhr may be best known for his minor role as thick-witted hairdresser Jurek in Kieślowski's Three Colors: White, in which he starred alongside Julie Delpy, Janusz Gajos, and Zbigniew Zamachowski. In Poland, he is probably best-known for the part of Max in Juliusz Machulski's 1985 dystopian cult comedy Seksmisja, and - to the youngest audience - for lending his voice to the talking donkey in the dubbed Polish version of the Shrek trilogy. Other important films include Kieślowski's "The Scar" (Blizna, 1976), "Camera Buff" (Amator, 1979) and Part 10 of his Decalogue series (1988), Machulski's Kingsize (1987), Kiler (1997) and Kiler 2 (1999), and Zanussi's Life for Life (1988).
Stuhr also cooperated with Polish directing legends Agnieszka Holland, Andrzej Wajda and Krzysztof Zanussi. In 1985, Stuhr made his own directing debut staging the Polish version of Patrick Süskind's play The Double Bass, in which he also played the (only) role. In spite of the production's success, it was not until 1995 that Stuhr began directing films as well, with "List of Adulteresses" (Spis cudzołożnic) based on a novel by Jerzy Pilch. Critics favourably compared his next effort "Love Stories" (Historie miłosne, 1997) to Kieślowski's work. The film consists of four unconnected episodes with Stuhr playing the lead role in each. Further movies directed by Stuhr are "Big Animal" (Duże zwierzę, 2000 - based on a Kieślowski screenplay) and "Tomorrow's Weather" (Pogoda na jutro, 2003). For these two, Stuhr employed the Polish alternative rock band Myslovitz who composed the title tracks and also had walk-on roles in the latter.
From 1990 to 1997, and again from 2002, Stuhr held the position of rector at the Kraków National Drama School, where he had learned his craft two decades before; in 1994 he formally obtained the title of professor in dramatic arts.
Stuhr's son Maciej (born 1975) is in the process of establishing himself as an actor in his own right, having played alongside his father in Kieślowski's Decalogue X (1988) and Love Stories (1997).
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Actor
- Pogoda na jutro (2003) aka Tomorrow's Weather as Jozef Koziol
- Show (2003) as Boss
- Weiser (2001)
- Duze zwierze (2000) aka Big Animal as Zygmunt Sawicki
- Vita altrui, La (2000) aka The Other's Life
- Down House (2000) as Gen. Ivolgin
- Tydzien z zycia mezczyzny (1999) aka A Week in the Life of a Man as Adam Borowski
- Kilerów 2-óch (1999) as Ryba
- Kiler (1997) as Ryba
- Historie milosne (1997) aka Love Stories as The Teacher/The priest/Col. Matalowski/Zdzsio
- Matka swojej matki (1996)
- Spis cudzoloznic (1995) aka List of Lovers as Gustaw
- Trzy kolory: Bialy (1994) aka Three Colors: White as Jurek
- Uprowadzenie Agaty (1993) aka Hijacking of Agata as Agata's Father
- Zycie za zycie (1991) aka Life for Life: Maximilian Kolbe as Pralat
- Dekalog (1989) aka The Decalogue as Jerzy
- Dekalog, dziesiec (1989) aka Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor's Goods as Jerzy
- Obywatel Piszczyk (1989) aka Citizen Piszczyk as Jan Piszczyk
- Déjà vu (1988) as Johnny Pollack
- Kingsajz (1988) aka King Size as Nadszyszkownik Kilkujadek
- Pociag do Hollywood (1987) aka Train to Hollywood as The Director
- Bohater roku (1987) aka Hero of the Year as Ludwik Danielak
- Luk Erosa (1987) aka Cupid's Bow as Stanislaw Ciaglewicz
- Przypadek (1987) aka Blind Chance (uncredited)
- Smierc Johna L. (1987) aka The Death of John L as Coalminer from Bytom
- Ga, Ga - Chwala bohaterom (1986) aka Ga-ga: Glory to the Heroes
- Ucieczka (1986)
- Film (1985) as Georg Netz
- O-bi, O-ba - Koniec cywilizacji (1985) aka O-Bi, O-Ba - The End of Civilization
- Rok spokojnego slonca (1984) aka The Year of the Quiet Sun as Adzio
- Seksmisja (1984) aka Sexmission as Maksymilian 'Maks' Paradys
- Dziady (1983) (TV) as Belzebub/Master of Ceremonies/Valet
- Matka Królów (1983) aka Mother of Kings
- From a Far Country (1981) aka From a Far Country: Pope John Paul II as Engineer
- Wojna swiatów - nastepne stulecie (1981) aka The War of the World: Next Century
- Spokój (1980) (TV) aka Peace as Antek Gralak
- Aktorzy prowincjonalni (1980) aka Provincial Actors
- Cma (1980) aka The Moth
- Szansa (1980) aka Chance
- Wizja lokalna 1901 (1980) aka Inspection of the Crime Scene 1901
- Amator (1979) aka Camera Buff as Filip Mosz
- Bez znieczulenia (1978) aka Without Anesthesia as Jerzy Porebowicz
- Wodzirej (1978) aka Top Dog as Danielak
- Blizna (1976) aka The Scar as Bednarz's assistant
- Przyjecie na dziesiec osób plus trzy (1973) (TV) as Guest in front of Employment Agency
- Trzecia czesc nocy (1971) aka The Third Part of the Night
[edit] Director and Screenplay writer
- Pogoda na jutro (2003) aka Tomorrow's Weather
- Duze zwierze (2000) aka Big Animal
- Tydzien z zycia mezczyzny (1999) aka A Week in the Life of a Man
- Historie milosne (1997) aka Love Stories
- Spis cudzoloznic (1995) aka List of Lovers
