Juozas Budraitis
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Juozas Budraitis (born 6 October 1940) is a Lithuanian actor. He has appeared in more than 60 films and television shows since 1966. He starred in the Soviet film '' Wounded Game'', which was entered into the
1977 Cannes Film Festival The 30th Cannes Film Festival took place from 13 to 27 May 1977. Italian filmmaker Roberto Rossellini served as jury president for the main competition. Italian filmmakers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top priz ...
. Budraitis also played a minor role in the finale of the
period drama A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...
miniseries '' The Queen's Gambit''.


Biography

Juozas Stanislavas Budraitis was born on 6 October 1940 in the village of Liepynai,
Kelmė Kelmė (; ; Yiddish: קעלם) is a city in northwestern Lithuania, a historical region of Samogitia. It has a population of 8,206 and is the administrative center of the Kelmė District Municipality. Name Kelmė's name is likely derived from t ...
,
Lithuanian SSR The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian SSR; ; ), also known as Soviet Lithuania or simply Lithuania, was '' de facto'' one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union between 1940–1941 and 1944–1990. After 1946, its terr ...
,
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
in a peasant family. In 1945, the family moved to
Klaipėda Klaipėda ( ; ) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. It is the List of cities in Lithuania, third-largest city in Lithuania, the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, fifth-largest city in the Baltic States, and the capi ...
, and in 1955 – to the small town of Švėkšna. In the years 1958-1960, Budraitis worked as a laborer at a training and production plant in Klaipėda. After serving in the army, he entered the law faculty of
Vilnius University Vilnius University ( Lithuanian: ''Vilniaus universitetas'') is a public research university, which is the first and largest university in Lithuania, as well as one of the oldest and most prominent higher education institutions in Central and Ea ...
. During the third year of his studies, he was approved for one of the main roles in the
Vytautas Žalakevičius Vytautas Žalakevičius (14 April 1930 – 12 November 1996) was a Lithuanian film director and screenwriter. His 1973 film '' That Sweet Word: Liberty!'' won the Golden Prize at the 8th Moscow International Film Festival. Biography Vytautas ...
film ''
Nobody Wanted to Die ''Nobody Wanted to Die'' (, ) is a 1965 Lithuanian film made in Soviet Lithuania and directed by Vytautas Žalakevičius. Žalakevičius, actor Donatas Banionis, and cinematographer Jonas Gricius were awarded USSR State Prize for the film in 1967 ...
'' which was released in 1966. Budraitis was already finishing his third year externally and afterwards transferred to the correspondence department. In 1968 he graduated from the university and started working as an actor at the Lithuanian Film Studios. By that time he had already become an established actor. From 1968 to 1976 Budraitis was filming in the republic and in films of other Soviet directors. During this period, he starred in the films '' The Shield and the Sword'' (1967), ''
Two Comrades Were Serving ''Two Comrades Were Serving'' (, translit. ''Sluzhili dva tovarishcha'') is a 1968 Soviet war film directed by Yevgeny Karelov with a script by Yuli Dunsky and Valeri Frid. The film is about the Russian Civil War, in particular, the battle f ...
'' (1968), ''
The Lanfier Colony ''The Lanfier Colony'' (, ) is a 1969 Czech-Soviet action, romantic, drama film directed by Jan Schmidt. It was entered into the 6th Moscow International Film Festival. Plot Tired of life on the continent, Horn convinces the captain of a Dutch ...
'' (1969), ''White Dunes'' (1969), ''
King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...
'' (1970) ''Ave Vita'' (1970), ''The Rudobel Republic'' (1971), '' That Sweet Word: Liberty!'' (1973), ''With You and without You ...'' (1973), ''Blockade'' (1974), ''Time does not Wait'' (1975), ''The Life and Death of Ferdinand Luce'' (1976), ''The Legend of Thiel'' (1976), ''The Lost House'' (1976). In 1976-1978 Budraitis studied at the
High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors 200px The High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors (HCFDS) () comprises a variety of optional post-graduate film school courses in Moscow, Russia. Its The Advanced Course for Screenwriters and Film Directors is the oldest professional q ...
under the
State Committee for Cinematography Goskino USSR () is the abbreviated name for the USSR State Committee for Cinematography (Государственный комитет по кинематографии СССР) in the Soviet Union. It was a central state directory body for Sovi ...
in Moscow. He then probationed as an assistant director on the set where his master and teacher was Žalakevičius. But the director's career of Budraitis did not work out after the failure of his debut film ''City of Birds'' (1982) based on the story of Yuri Olesha. In 1980-1988 he was an actor of the
Kaunas State Drama Theatre The National Kaunas Drama Theatre (NKDT), formerly Kaunas State Drama Theatre, is a theatre and theatre company in Kaunas, Lithuania. The company is the oldest professional theatre troupe in Lithuania, founded in 1920 at the building now known ...
, where he acted in the plays ''Builder Solnes'' (1980), ''Sharunas'' (''Prince of Dainavsky'', 1980), ''Blue Horses on Red Grass'' (1982), ''Caligula'' (1983), ''Private'' (1985), ''The Home for the Elderly'' (1986). In parallel with the work in the theater, the actor continued to play in films. In the 1980s, he starred in the films ''
Life Is Beautiful ''Life Is Beautiful'' (, ) is a 1997 Italian period comedy-drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian bookshop owner, who employs his imagin ...
'' (1979), '' Fairfax's Millions'' (1980), ''Dangerous Age'' (1981), ''Niccolo Paganini'' (1982), ''Honeymoon in America'' (1982), ''Confessions of his Wife'' (1984), ''
Battle of Moscow The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front during World War II, between October 1941 and January 1942. The Soviet defensive effort frustrated H ...
'' (1985), '' The 13th Apostle'' (1988), ''The Sinner'' (1988), etc. In 1983, Budraitis played one of the main roles in the television series ''The Rich Man, the Poor Man,'' based on the novel of the same name by
Irwin Shaw Irwin Shaw (February 27, 1913 – May 16, 1984) was an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short-story author whose written works have sold more than 14 million copies. He is best known for two of his novels: '' The Young Lions'' (1 ...
, and also starred in the romantic comedy ''Carousel''. These roles have made him one of the most sought-after actors of his generation. In the 1990s, he starred in the films ''Mad Laurie'' (1991), ''Do not Ask Me About Nothing'' (1991), ''The Trail of the Rain'' (1991), ''The Tragedy of the Century'' (1993), ''The House on a Rock'' (1994), ''The Devil's Charm'' (1994), ''I do not know who I am'' (1995), etc. At the same time, he continues to act actively in domestic and Russian films, such as ''Classic'' (1999), ''
Demobbed Demobilization or demobilisation (see American and British English spelling differences, spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or becaus ...
'' (2000), ''Revenge is Sweet'' (2001), ''
Down House Down House is the former home of the English Natural history, naturalist Charles Darwin and his family. It was in this house and garden that Darwin worked on his theory of evolution by natural selection, which he had conceived in London befor ...
'' (2001), ''Princess Slutskaya'' (2004), ''
The Fall of the Empire ''The Fall of the Empire'' () is a Russian crime, thriller TV miniseries in ten episodes directed and co-written by Vladimir Khotinenko, broadcast in March 2005. It is set in World War I, following Russian counterintelligence officer Sergei Pavl ...
'' (2005), '' Wolfhound'' (2006), ''Tanker Tango'' (2006), ''Yes You Will not be Judged ...'' (2007), ''Kromov'' (2009), ''Debt'' (2009), ''Armed resistance'' (2009), ''Black Arrow'' (2009), and others. In February 2008, Juozas Budraitis performed for the first time on the Russian stage, having played one of the main roles in the new performance of the Presnyakov brothers ''PAB'', the premiere of which took place in Theatrium on Serpukhovka. In 2009, he acted in the play ''Cherry Orchard'' staged by the Finnish director Christian Smeds.


Other activities


Art

Since the late 1960s Juozas Budraitis has been professionally engaged in photography. Personal exhibitions of Budraitis as photographer and artist were held in Vilnius, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod. His works are exhibited in prestigious galleries of Moscow and St. Petersburg. In the spring of 2010, an exhibition of works by Juozas Budraitis "Illusion" was launched in the "Gallery on Mosfilm", where he appeared in two roles: as model and photographer. Member of the Lithuanian Union of Photo Artists, also a member of the Lithuanian Union of Cinematographers, the Union of Theatrical Figures and the Lithuanian Union of Photo Artists.


Culture

Since 1995, Budraitis has lived in Moscow, where he started working as a cultural adviser at the Lithuanian Embassy; in 2001 he became a cultural attaché at the Lithuanian Embassy in Russia. Being an attache, Budraitis immortalized the memory of the poet and diplomat Jurgis Baltrušaitis - he is one of the initiators of the establishment of the Baltrušaitis Foundation. The diplomat's house became the center of attraction of the Moscow intelligentsia and members of the Lithuanian society, as well as the venue for international scientific conferences. Juozas Budraitis is also the author of a multi-year program of Lithuanian culture in Russia under the name "Window to Lithuania". Efforts of Budraitis in the Moscow courtyard of foreign literature immortalized the memory of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, at the Moscow State University. MVLomonosov's Center of Baltic Statistics was opened. In 2002 Budraitis was given the diplomatic rank of Extraordinary Envoy and Plenipotentiary Minister.


Honors

People's Artist of the Lithuanian SSR (1982). In 2000, for his great contribution to the preservation and development of Russian-Lithuanian cooperation in the field of culture, Juozas Budraitis was awarded the Order of Friendship. In 2003, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Lithuanian Order of Merit for Lithuania. In September 2010 he was awarded the Medal "For Merit in the Lithuanian Diplomatic Service".


Selected filmography

* ''
Nobody Wanted to Die ''Nobody Wanted to Die'' (, ) is a 1965 Lithuanian film made in Soviet Lithuania and directed by Vytautas Žalakevičius. Žalakevičius, actor Donatas Banionis, and cinematographer Jonas Gricius were awarded USSR State Prize for the film in 1967 ...
'' (1966) * '' The Shield and the Sword'' (1968) * ''
Feelings According to the '' APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations, thoughts, or images evoking them". The term ''feeling'' is closel ...
'' (1968) * ''
Two Comrades Were Serving ''Two Comrades Were Serving'' (, translit. ''Sluzhili dva tovarishcha'') is a 1968 Soviet war film directed by Yevgeny Karelov with a script by Yuli Dunsky and Valeri Frid. The film is about the Russian Civil War, in particular, the battle f ...
'' (1968) * ''
The Lanfier Colony ''The Lanfier Colony'' (, ) is a 1969 Czech-Soviet action, romantic, drama film directed by Jan Schmidt. It was entered into the 6th Moscow International Film Festival. Plot Tired of life on the continent, Horn convinces the captain of a Dutch ...
'' (1969) * ''
King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...
'' (1971) * '' That Sweet Word: Liberty!'' (1973) * '' Wounded Game'' (1977) * ''
Centaurs A centaur ( ; ; ), occasionally hippocentaur, also called Ixionidae (), is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse that was said to live in the mountains of Thessaly. In one version o ...
'' (1978) * ''
Life Is Beautiful ''Life Is Beautiful'' (, ) is a 1997 Italian period comedy-drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian bookshop owner, who employs his imagin ...
'' * ''
The Big Night Bathe ''The Big Night Bathe'' (, Transliteration, translit. Golyamoto noshtno kapane) is a 1980 Bulgarian drama film directed by Binka Zhelyazkova. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1981 Cannes Film Festival. Cast * Yanina ...
'' (1980) * '' Fairfax's Millions'' (1980) * ''
Faktas ''Faktas'' (English: "Fact", , "Blood Group Zero") is a 1981 Soviet Lithuanian-language war film directed by . It was entered into the 1981 Cannes Film Festival, where Yelena Solovey won the award for Best Supporting Actress. The film is based ...
'' (1981) * ''
Return from Orbit ''Return from Orbit'' () is a Soviet 1984 science fiction film directed by Aleksandr Surin. It featured scenes filmed in orbit onboard Salyut 7 space station and Soyuz T-9 spacecraft. The film depicts an accident on an orbital station where a me ...
'' (1983) * ''
Battle of Moscow The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a sector of the Eastern Front during World War II, between October 1941 and January 1942. The Soviet defensive effort frustrated H ...
'' (1985) * ''
Day of Wrath ''Day of Wrath'' () is a 1943 Danish drama film directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and starring Lisbeth Movin, Thorkild Roose and Preben Lerdorff Rye. It is an adaptation of the 1909 play '' Anne Pedersdotter'' by Hans Wiers-Jenssen, based on a ...
'' (1985) * '' The 13th Apostle'' (1988) * ''
The Red Flute ''Revenge'' (, literally "Revenge", also known as ''The Reed Flute'') is a 1989 Soviet historical drama film directed by Yermek Shinarbayev, Ermek Shinarbaev and written by Anatoli Kim. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1991 ...
'' (1989) * ''
Demobbed Demobilization or demobilisation (see American and British English spelling differences, spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or becaus ...
'' (2000) * ''
Down House Down House is the former home of the English Natural history, naturalist Charles Darwin and his family. It was in this house and garden that Darwin worked on his theory of evolution by natural selection, which he had conceived in London befor ...
'' (2001) * ''
Arie Arie is a masculine given name. As a Dutch name, Arie * Arie Altman (Plant Biology and AgBiotech) (born 1937), Israeli Professor of Agriculture * (1903–1982), Dutch composer * Arie van Beek (born 1951), Dutch music teacher and conductor *Arie B ...
'' (2004) * ''
The Fall of the Empire ''The Fall of the Empire'' () is a Russian crime, thriller TV miniseries in ten episodes directed and co-written by Vladimir Khotinenko, broadcast in March 2005. It is set in World War I, following Russian counterintelligence officer Sergei Pavl ...
'' (2005, TV) * '' Wolfhound'' (2007) * '' The Queen's Gambit'' (2020)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Budraitis, Juozas 1940 births Living people Lithuanian male film actors Lithuanian male television actors Soviet male film actors Soviet male television actors 20th-century Lithuanian male actors 21st-century Lithuanian male actors High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors alumni Commander's Crosses of the Order for Merits to Lithuania Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Recipients of the Order of Friendship Commander's Grand Crosses of the Order for Merits to Lithuania Recipients of the Order of Merit (Ukraine), 3rd class