Elektafilm a.s., formerly Elektafilm s.r.o. was a Czechoslovak

film production Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

and film distribution company that existed from 1923 to 1951. It produced and distributed silent and since 1930

sound films A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

languages. In the 1930s, Elektafilm was the biggest film production company in Czechoslovakia. The most successful Elektafilm-produced film was

Gustav Machatý Gustav Machatý (9 May 1901 – 13 December 1963) was a Czech film director, screenwriter and actor. He directed films in Czechoslovakia, the United States, and Germany, including '' Erotikon'' and '' Ecstasy''. Life He was born Augustín O ...

's ''

Ecstasy Ecstasy most often refers to: * Ecstasy (emotion), a trance or trance-like state in which a person transcends normal consciousness * Religious ecstasy, a state of consciousness, visions or absolute euphoria * Ecstasy (philosophy), to be or stand o ...

''. Most of its films were shot at rented A-B Ateliers in

Vinohrady Vinohrady (until 1960 Královské Vinohrady, in English literally "Royal Vineyards" ) is a cadastral district in Prague. It is so named because the area was once covered in vineyards dating from the 14th century. Vinohrady lies in the municipal ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

in 1920s, and

Barrandov Studios Barrandov Studios is a set of film studios in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the largest film studio in the country and one of the largest in Europe. Barrandov has made several major Hollywood productions, including ''Mission: Impossible (film), ...

since 1930. Another Czechoslovak production company, Elekta-Journal (1929-1937), had no connection to Elektafilm despite the similar name. Elektafilm frequently worked with directors

Martin Frič Martin Frič (29 March 1902 – 26 August 1968) was a Czech film director, screenwriter and actor. He had more than 100 directing credits between 1929 and 1968, including feature films, shorts and documentary films. Throughout his life, F ...

Svatopluk Innemann Svatopluk Innemann (18 February 1896 – 30 October 1945) was a Czech film director, cinematographer, screenwriter, film editor and actor. He was one of the pioneers of Czech cinema. Biography and works Innemann, was a son of the Czech director ...

Karel Lamač Karel Lamač (27 January 1897 – 2 August 1952) was a Czech film director, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He directed more than 100 films in Czechoslovakia, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Life Lama� ...

and Miroslav J. Krňanský.

History

Elektafilm was founded by Josef Auerbach, Julius Schmitt and Jan Reiter as a limited liability company in 1923. In 1926, Elektafilm acquired a production company Vircofilm. In 1928, the company transformed to joint-stock company. In 1930, Elektafilm bought two other Czechoslovak film production companies Slaviafilm (then owned by

Sascha-Film Sascha-Film, in full Sascha-Filmindustrie AG and from 1933 Tobis-Sascha-Filmindustrie AG, was the largest Austrian film production company of the silent film and early sound film period. History The business was established in 1910 by Alexander ...

) and Moldaviafilm. In 1932, Auerbach acquired 100% of shares of Elektafilm. He sold Moldaviafilm in 1934. In 1939, Auerbach moved to New York through Brazil because of the worsening political situation for the Jews in Europe. During the war years, the company was taken over by the Germans and produced films for

UFA GmbH UFA GmbH, shortened to UFA (), is a film and television production company that unites all production activities of the media conglomerate Bertelsmann in Germany. The original UFA was established as on December 18, 1917, as a direct response t ...

. In 1945, the company was nationalized and finally dissolved in 1951. Josef Auerbach's effort to get the company back were not successful. In USA, he went into real estate and popcorn business, then he worked with

The Mirisch Company The Mirisch Company was an American film production company owned by Walter Mirisch and his brothers, Marvin and Harold Mirisch. The company also had sister firms known at various times as Mirisch Production Company, Mirisch Pictures Inc., Miri ...

. In 1964 he accepted the

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 ...

for Lauro Venturi's short documentary film ''

Chagall Marc Chagall (born Moishe Shagal; – 28 March 1985) was a Russian and French artist. An early modernism, modernist, he was associated with the School of Paris, École de Paris, as well as several major art movement, artistic styles and created ...

''.

International operations

In the 1930s Elektafilm was co-producing their multi-language movies with French

Gaumont Film Company Gaumont SA () is a French film and television production and distribution company headquartered in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Founded by the engineer-turned-inventor Léon Gaumont (1864–1946) in 1895, it is the oldest extant film company in ...

, German Sonorfilm and Ondra-Lamač-Film or Austrian DonauFilm.

Films produced

Elektafilm

Slaviafilm

References

Bibliography

* Auerbach, Norbert: ''Z Barrandova do Hollywoodu'', 2006, Prague: Mladá fronta * Jiras, Pavel: ''Barrandov I: Vzestup k výšinám'', 2011, Ottovo nakladatelství * Jiras, Pavel: ''Barrandov II: Zlatý věk (1933-1939)'', 2012, Ottovo nakladatelství * Bednařík, Petr: ''Arizace české kinematografie'', 2003, Karolinum {{ISBN, 80-246-0619-4 Film studios Film production companies of the Czech Republic Entertainment companies established in 1923 Film distributors 1923 establishments in Czechoslovakia Entertainment companies disestablished in 1951