On December 8, the DGA Eastern Region Special Projects Committee held a special evening celebrating the work of Director Miloš Forman, who passed away in April 2018. Held in the Guild’s New York Theater, the evening honored Forman’s contributions to the industry and featured a screening of his 1975 DGA Award-winning feature, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
The event kicked off with a welcome from DGA Eastern Region Special Projects Committee Chair Raymond De Felitta, who talked about Forman's illustrious career and legacy and introduced the panelists. Illustrated by clips from Forman’s work, the discussion about the iconic director’s influence that featured Director Dan Algrant, Actor/Director Edward Norton and Producer/UPM Michael Hausman and Director Adam Davidson who served as moderator of the conversation.
Davidson kicked off the discussion of clips by reading a statement from Director Greg Mottola, who was unable to attend the event, about his admiration for Forman's Loves of a Blonde. Algrant, who helmed features such as Naked in New York, People I Know, and Greetings from Tim Buckley, discussed the impact of Forman’s feature Fireman’s Ball. Algrant received his MFA at Columbia University’s Film School where he studied with Forman. Algrant also interviewed Forman for the DGA's Visual History Program. Hausman, who worked with Forman on the features Hair, Ragtime, Amadeus, Valmont, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Man on the Moon and Goya’s Ghosts, spoke about their collaboration on the 1996 feature The People vs Larry Flynt. Norton, who before going on to helm his own feature Keeping the Faith, was directed by Forman in the feature The People vs Larry Flynt, discussed Forman's directing style as exemplified in a scene from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. In addition to moderating, Davidson who had Forman as an executive producer on his first feature, Way Past Cool, also spoke about the impact of Forman's Taking Off.
The discussion portion of the evening concluded with closing remarks from the panel and the audience was left to enjoy Forman’s iconic feature One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
After joining the DGA in 1970, Forman served two terms on the National Board and was a member of the DGA President’s Committee on Film Preservation. In 2009, Forman gave the keynote address at the CISAC World Copyright Summit in Washington, D.C. on behalf of the DGA expressing concern about how rampant digital theft would impact the ability of artists to be compensated for their work. In addition to winning the DGA’s Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film Award for Cuckoo’s Nest, Forman also won in that same category for Amadeus in 1984. In 2013, he became the 34th recipient of the Guild’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Distinguished Achievement in Motion Picture Direction. Forman was also recognized with the DGA Honor in 2008 and the John Huston Award for Artists Rights in 1997.
Upon learning of his passing, DGA President Thomas Schlamme said, “Miloš was truly one of ours. A filmmaker, artist, and champion of artists’ rights. His contribution to the craft of directing has been an undeniable source of inspiration for generations of filmmakers. His directorial vision deftly brought together provocative subject matter, stellar performances and haunting images to tell the stories of the universal struggle for free expression and self-determination that informed so much of his work and his life. He stood up on behalf of his beloved fellow filmmakers time and again, and he believed with all his heart that creativity and artistic freedom could make a difference in the world. Now it’s up to us to prove him right. We will miss him.”