Andrew Vajna
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Andrew G. Vajna (born András György Vajna; 1 August 1944 – 20 January 2019) was a Hungarian film producer whose films include the first three entries in the ''
Rambo Rambo may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *John Rambo, the main character from the ''Rambo'' franchise * Mary Rambo, female character in '' Invisible Man'' Films * ''Rambo'' (franchise), starring Sylvester St ...
'' series, '' Total Recall'', ''
Tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...
'', ''
Die Hard with a Vengeance ''Die Hard with a Vengeance'' is a 1995 American action film directed and produced by John McTiernan, from a screenplay written by Jonathan Hensleigh, and starring Bruce Willis as John McClane. It is the third installment in the ''Die Hard'' f ...
'', '' Evita'', and ''
Terminator 3 ''Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' is a 2003 science fiction action film, the third installment in the ''Terminator'' franchise and a sequel to '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' (1991). It was directed by Jonathan Mostow and stars Arnold Sc ...
''. He founded the now-defunct production companies
Carolco Pictures Carolco Pictures, Inc. was an American independent film studio that was founded by Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna in 1976. Kassar and Vajna ran Carolco together until 1989, when Vajna left to form Cinergi Pictures. Carolco hit its peak in th ...
,
Cinergi Pictures Cinergi Pictures Inc. was an American independent film production company founded by Andrew G. Vajna in 1989, after he had sold his interest in his first production company, Carolco International Pictures. The company had a number of major h ...
, and
C2 Pictures C2 Pictures was an American Independent business, independent Media company, media-entertainment company that specialized in Film production, film and television production. History The company was established in 1998 by Carolco Pictures co-fou ...
, frequently in collaboration with
Mario Kassar Mario F. Kassar (; born October 10, 1951) is a Lebanese-American film producer and industry executive who produced the first three films of the '' Rambo'' series, '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' Total Recall'', ''The Doors, Angel Heart'', ' ...
.


Biography


Early life and first business successes

Andrew G. Vajna was born in
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
to György Vajna (born Weidmann), a merchant, and his wife, Klára. His family was
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
. In 1956 at the age of 12, he fled from
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
and with the support of
Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...
he made his way alone to Canada. He arrived having no friends and speaking no English. Later on he reunited with his parents in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, USA, who fled Hungary separately. He studied cinematography at
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
and then joined the university's Educational Motion Picture Department where he worked on different projects. Preferring independence Vajna left UCLA to set up his own photo studio, but that venture soon came to end when he broke his leg in a ski accident and business could not operate for 9 months. After his recovery he became a hairdresser and teamed up with a boyhood friend, Gábor Koltai, a wig stylist in Hollywood, to produce high quality wigs. Vajna moved to
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
where he established his own wig manufacturing company, called Gilda Fashion. Finally Vajna sold the firm in 1973. By that time the company employed more than 3,000 people.


Entering the film industry – The Carolco times

Vajna launched his career in the entertainment industry with his purchase of motion picture theatres in the Far East. He founded Panasia Films Limited in Hong Kong, a highly profitable venture in the distribution, acquisition and representation of films. After Vajna negotiated the sales of Panasia to Raymond Chow's
Golden Harvest Company Orange Sky Golden Harvest (OSGH) (), previously known as Golden Harvest () from 1970 to 2009, is a film production, distribution, and exhibition company based in Hong Kong. It dominated Hong Kong cinema box office sales from the 1970s to the ...
in 1976, and met
Mario Kassar Mario F. Kassar (; born October 10, 1951) is a Lebanese-American film producer and industry executive who produced the first three films of the '' Rambo'' series, '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' Total Recall'', ''The Doors, Angel Heart'', ' ...
at the
1975 Cannes Film Festival The 28th Cannes Film Festival took place from 9 to 23 May 1975. French actress Jeanne Moreau served as jury president for the main competition. Algerian filmmaker Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for the drama ...
, he and the film producer and industry executive formed
Carolco Carolco Pictures, Inc. was an American independent film studio that was founded by Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna in 1976. Kassar and Vajna ran Carolco together until 1989, when Vajna left to form Cinergi Pictures. Carolco hit its peak in ...
, specializing in sales, financing and distribution of films worldwide. Vajna and Kassar had rented a small office on
Melrose Avenue Melrose Avenue (sometimes referred to simply as "Melrose") is a shopping, dining and entertainment destination in Los Angeles, California, starting at Santa Monica Boulevard at the border between Beverly Hills, California, Beverly Hills and W ...
where their desks faced each other in the office and Vajna's wife and Kassar's girlfriend were their secretaries. In less than four years, Carolco became one of the top three foreign sales organizations in motion pictures industry. In 1982, Vajna was a founder and then president of the American Film Marketing Association. During that same year, Vajna and Kassar made their film production debut with '' Rambo: First Blood'', starring
Sylvester Stallone Sylvester Gardenzio "Sly" Stallone (; born July 6, 1946) is an American actor and filmmaker. In a Sylvester Stallone filmography, film career spanning more than fifty years, Stallone has received List of awards and nominations received by Syl ...
. ''First Blood'' was a success, grossing $120 million internationally. '' Rambo: First Blood Part II'' was released in 1985, generating more than $300 million worldwide. Vajna was executive producer with
Mario Kassar Mario F. Kassar (; born October 10, 1951) is a Lebanese-American film producer and industry executive who produced the first three films of the '' Rambo'' series, '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' Total Recall'', ''The Doors, Angel Heart'', ' ...
on such films such as
Alan Parker Sir Alan William Parker (14 February 1944 – 31 July 2020) was an English film director, screenwriter and producer. His early career, beginning in his late teens, was spent as a copywriter and director of television advertisements. After abo ...
's ''
Angel Heart ''Angel Heart'' is a 1987 neo-noir psychological horror film, an adaptation of William Hjortsberg's 1978 novel '' Falling Angel''. The film is written and directed by Alan Parker, and stars Mickey Rourke, Robert De Niro, Lisa Bonet and Char ...
'', and ''
Rambo III ''Rambo III'' is a 1988 American action film starring Sylvester Stallone as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. Directed by Peter MacDonald, the script was co-written by Stallone and Sheldon Lettich. It is a sequel to '' Rambo: First Blood Part I ...
''. Other projects include ''
Music Box A music box (American English) or musical box (British English) is an automatic musical instrument in a box that produces Musical note, musical notes by using a set of pins placed on a revolving cylinder (geometry), cylinder or disc to pluck ...
'', '' Mountains of the Moon'', '' Total Recall'', '' Air America'', ''
Narrow Margin ''Narrow Margin'' is a 1990 American neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Peter Hyams. It stars Gene Hackman and Anne Archer, with James B. Sikking, Nigel Bennett, Harris Yulin and J. T. Walsh in supporting roles. It was ...
'' and ''
Jacob's Ladder Jacob's Ladder () is a ladder or staircase leading to Heaven that was featured in a dream the Biblical Patriarch Jacob had during his flight from his brother Esau in the Book of Genesis (chapter 28). The significance of the dream has been de ...
''.


Cinergi Productions Inc.

In December 1989, Vajna sold all his interest in Carolco for $106 million and formed Cinergi Productions, Inc. to engage in the financing, development, production and distribution of major event motion pictures. As part of its business plan, Cinergi formed an alliance with
The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...
for distribution of Cinergi motion pictures in the United States, Canada and Latin America. Vajna's strategy was to develop long-term relationships with certain talent and produce a steady supply of two to four event motion pictures per year. John McTiernan directed Cinergi's first production, ''
Medicine Man A medicine man (from Ojibwe ''mashkikiiwinini'') or medicine woman (from Ojibwe ''mashkikiiwininiikwe'') is a traditional healer and spiritual leader who serves a community of Indigenous people of the Americas. Each culture has its own name i ...
''. Christmas 1993 saw the release of ''
Tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...
'', the Wyatt Earp/Doc Holliday legend. In 1994, Cinergi released ''
Renaissance Man A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...
'' and ''
Color of Night ''Color of Night'' is a 1994 American erotic mystery thriller film produced by Cinergi Pictures and released in the United States by Buena Vista Pictures (through its Hollywood Pictures label). The film was directed by Richard Rush, was join ...
''. The summer of 1995 saw the release of two Cinergi productions. The first was ''
Die Hard with a Vengeance ''Die Hard with a Vengeance'' is a 1995 American action film directed and produced by John McTiernan, from a screenplay written by Jonathan Hensleigh, and starring Bruce Willis as John McClane. It is the third installment in the ''Die Hard'' f ...
''. To date, the film has grossed over $365 million worldwide. The second release was ''
Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of the British weekly anthology Comic book, comic ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' (1977). He is the magazi ...
''. Also in 1995, Cinergi released two more films: ''
The Scarlet Letter ''The Scarlet Letter: A Romance'' is a historical novel by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1850. Set in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony during the years 1642 to 1649, the novel tells the story of Hester Prynne, who concei ...
'' and ''
Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 36th vice president under P ...
''. Nixon received four Academy Award nominations. Another Cinergi release was Alan Parker’s adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s rock opera '' Evita'' starring
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
and
Antonio Banderas José Antonio Domínguez Bandera (born 10 August 1960), known professionally as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish actor. Known for his work in films of several genres, he has received numerous accolades, including a Cannes Film Festival Award ...
in 1996. Nominated for five Academy Awards, the film was also a commercial success, grossing $141 million worldwide and winning
Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...
s for Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Original Song.


Back to his roots, entering the Hungarian film industry

Vajna never forgot his Hungarian roots and always tried to help the Hungarian film industry. He had a major role in many films being shot in Budapest, such as '' Evita'', ''
Escape to Victory ''Escape to Victory'' (or simply ''Victory'') is a 1981 sports war film directed by John Huston and starring Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, Max von Sydow and Pelé. The film is about Allied prisoners of war who are interned in a German ...
'' and ''
Red Heat '' Red heat'' is a practice of using colours to determine the temperature of metal Red Heat may also refer to: * ''Red Heat'' (1985 film), a 1985 film starring Linda Blair * ''Red Heat'' (1988 film), a 1988 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger a ...
''. He also participated in the distribution of Motion Pictures in Hungary eventually having a 70% share of the Hungarian box office. In 1989 Vajna founde
InterCom
that has become a market-leader and a distributor of many Hollywood studios, including 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, Disney and MGM. He was a producer of the record-breaking Hungarian comedy '' Out of Order'' aired in 1997. With 750,000 viewers in cinemas and several million on television it broke Hungarian box office records. In 1998, Vajna took Cinergi private by buying out the public stockholders. Thereafter, he joined with his former partner,
Mario Kassar Mario F. Kassar (; born October 10, 1951) is a Lebanese-American film producer and industry executive who produced the first three films of the '' Rambo'' series, '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'', '' Total Recall'', ''The Doors, Angel Heart'', ' ...
, and started C2 Pictures. Their first return venture into big budget Hollywood was ''
I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players a ...
'' (2002), starring
Eddie Murphy Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He had his breakthrough as a standup comic before gaining stardom for his film roles; he is widely recognized as one of the greatest comedians of all time. H ...
and
Owen Wilson Owen Cunningham Wilson (born November 18, 1968) is an American actor. He has frequently worked with filmmaker Wes Anderson, with whom he has shared writing and acting credits on the films '' Bottle Rocket'' (1996), '' Rushmore'' (1998), and ''T ...
, which was shot in Budapest. In 2002 he founded
DIGIC Pictures DIGIC Pictures is a Hungarian 3D animation Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating moving images. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both still images and moving images, while compute ...
in Hungary which is an animation studio specializing in full 3D animation and visual effects. In 2003, he and Kassar produced '' Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines'' with
Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...
. In 2005 Vajna was, together with
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...
and
Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu (; born December 2, 1968) is an American actress, producer, and artist. Widely regarded as a trailblazer for Asian Americans in arts and entertainment, Asian American representation in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, she is t ...
, the executive producer of a feature-length documentary called ''
Freedom's Fury ''Freedom's Fury'' is a documentary film about the semifinal water polo match between Hungary and the USSR at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. The match took place against the background of the Hungarian Revolution, that was bruta ...
'', created by
Colin Keith Gray Colin Keith Gray is a Canadian actor, writer and film director. He played Frank Hardy on the TV show ''The Hardy Boys'' for thirteen episodes. He is known for directing the documentary film '' Freedom's Fury''. Early life Gray was born in Ann A ...
and Megan Raney Aarons, which showed his renewed interest in the story of the
1956 Hungarian Revolution The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 4 November 1956; ), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was an attempted countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the policies caused by ...
. The film called ''The Children of Glory'', which showed the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, was Hungary's most successful movie in 2006 having been viewed by more than half a million people.


Reformer of the Hungarian film funding system

From 2011 Vajna worked as the Government Commissioner in charge of the Hungarian film industry. In the same year Vajna conceived Hungarian National Film Fund with the mission to contribute to the production of Hungarian films or co-productions that provide art and entertainment for moviegoers and bring significant success both domestically and on an international level. Under Vajna's supervision, the money spent on film production in Hungary had doubled between 2011 and 2014. The Film Fund provides transparent financial and professional support as well as creative cooperation, marketing support, professional expertise and international industry contacts, handling festivals, sales activity and apprentice program. One of the recent films that received financial support from Hungarian National Film Fund was the hard-hitting drama ''
Son of Saul ''Son of Saul'' () is a 2015 Hungarian historical drama film directed by László Nemes, in his feature directorial debut, and co-written by Nemes and Clara Royer. It is set in the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II, and follows ...
'', which premiered at the
2015 Cannes Film Festival The 68th Cannes Film Festival took place from 13 to 24 May 2015. Coen brothers, Ethan and Joel Coen were the Co-Presidents of the Jury for the main competition, marking the first time that two people co-chaired the jury. Since the Coen brothers ...
where it won the Grand Prix. It also won the
Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...
for Best Foreign Language Film, becoming the first Hungarian film to win the award. As its biggest achievement, ''Son of Saul'' was the 2016
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
winner in the foreign language category. During the Vajna era Hungarian movies financed by th
Hungarian National Film Fund
won altogether more than 130 international awards while the number of foreign films produced in Hungary increased significantly.


Media holdings and links with Viktor Orbán's government

Following his return to his native country, Vajna played an important role in
Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian lawyer and politician who has been the 56th prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has also led the Fidesz political party since 200 ...
's government's influence on the media. In 2015 he bought the Hungarian TV2 Group, the country's second-biggest commercial channel. The state-owned lender Eximbank, which usually supports export companies, helped Vajna's acquisition. In 2015, TV2 won nearly a fifth of state advertising spending, four times more than its nearest rival, according to the independent Hungarian watchdog Mérték Media Monitor. Under Vajna's ownership, the channel's editorial stance was strongly in favour of the government. From 2016 until his death he also owned the Rádió 1 radio station. In 2017 he bought Lapcom Zrt. which includes the tabloid
Bors Bors (; ) is the name of two knights in Arthurian legend, an elder and a younger. The two first appear in the 13th-century Lancelot-Grail romance prose cycle. Bors the Elder is the King of Gaunnes (Gannes/Gaunes/Ganis) during the early period ...
, and the regional dailies Délmagyarország and
Kisalföld The Little Hungarian Plain or Little Alföld (Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kisalföld'' , Slovak language, Slovak: ''Malá dunajská kotlina'', German language, German: ''Kleine Ungarische Tiefebene'') is a plain (tectonic Depression (geology ...
.


Death

Vajna died of a heart attack at his home in Budapest on 20 January 2019 at age 74. Andrew had a son named Justin Andrew Vajna who was born in 1980 but he committed suicide on March 2, 2007 at the age of 26. Justin was suffering from schizophrenia.


Filmography


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vajna, Andrew G. 1944 births 2019 deaths Burials at Kerepesi Cemetery Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery Carolco Pictures Hungarian film producers Film people from Budapest Hungarian emigrants to the United States American people of Hungarian descent American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent American film production company founders