A Walk Worthwhile

Matěj Forman was born in 1964 as one of the twins of the actor Věra Křesadlová and the film director Miloš Forman. Following a year’s work experience at the Jiří Trnka Studio, he studied at Prague’s Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design - the Film and Television Graphics Studio with Professor Jágr - and for a year at Columbia University (graphics studio). In the 1980s he and his brother Petr performed at theatre fairs on Prague’s Střelecký Island. Since then he, his brother Petr and several other friends established the Forman Brothers Theatre, a loose association of comedians without a permanent stage (particularly noteworthy is their collaboration with the French troupe Cabaret Théatre Dromesko), he has participated in all its projects. At first as an actor - Baroque Opera (1992), The Bartered Bride (1996), later on as a set designer - Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame (1993), Sedlák, čert a bába (The Peasant, Devil and Crone, 1994) and Bouda - La Baraque (1997), where he has participated in the creation of graphic details. As regards other, mostly very wideranging Forman Brothers Theatre projects, he has worked as the head of the creative team (the most frequent collaborators being Andrea Sodomková and Ondřej Mašek) - Nachové plachty (Purple Sails, 2000), La Belle et la Bête (2003), Klapzubova jedenáctka (Klapzuba’s Eleven, 2005). Then it was Obludárium (premiered in 2007 in France, in 2008 in the Czech Republic) which was awarded with Alfred Radok Prize as the best production of the year 2008, and which the Forman Brothers Theatre has been touring with round Europe. Furthermore, he has also created set designs for two ANPU theatre performances - Svatební košile (The Spectre’s Bride, 1998) and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (2005, in collaboration with A. Skálová). In addition to theatre, Matěj Forman has also worked as an illustrator. His graphics and drawings have accompanied Jiří Stránský’s trilogy of children’s books, originating on the basis of letters from a communist prison, Povídačky pro Klárku (Fables for Klara, 1996), Povídačky pro moje slunce (Fables for My Sun, 2002) and Perlorodky (Pearl-oysters, 2005). He has also illustrated Anna Gráfová’s book of reminiscences Jak říkala babička (As Grandma Said, 2001) and Slabikář (Primer, 2004) for first-graders with texts by the poet Radek Malý. He has also participated in artistic implementations for children’s wards in Prague’s Motol Teaching Hospital. When it comes to film, Matěj and his twin brother Petr appeared as children in Papoušek’s trilogy about the Homolka family (Ecce Homo Homolka 1969, Hogo - fogo Homolka 1970, Homolka a tobolka 1972). Besides Baroque Opera (1997) he has played minor roles in, for example, the films Vaterland - lovecký deník (Vaterland - A Hunting Diary, 2004, directed by D. Jařab), Mazaný Filip (Smart Philip, 2003, directed by V. Marhoul) and Akumulátor (Accumulator, 2001, directed by J. Svěrák).