Albanian director and People's Artist Dhimitër Anagnosti passed away in the early hours of the morning, at the age of 89.
Anagnosti had been suffering from an illness for a long time and today he finally succumbed to it. The news of his passing was announced by his daughter, Juna.
Who was Demetrius Anagnosti?
He completed primary school in his native village and comprehensive and secondary school in Vlora. From 1954 to 1960 he attended the Moscow Film Institute "VGIK", where he graduated as a cinematographer. Together with Viktor Gjika, they shot the film "Man Never Dies", an adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's story, as his graduation project, which was awarded the First Prize at the World Film Schools Festival, which took place in the Netherlands in 1961.
He began working as a cameraman at the "New Albania" Film Studio in 1961, with the film "Debatik" (1961) and then with the film "Our Land" (1964). He also shot the first color documentary film "Decorative Stones". He made his first film as a director in 1966, together with Viktor Gjika, "The Commissioner of Light", and a year later, alone as a director, the film "The Silent Duel". In his 40-year career, he has made 14 feature films, 10 documentaries, and has won many awards in various national and international competitions.
He is the author of 15 screenplays and in almost all of his films he has written the script himself. Anagnosti is a man of free thought, persistent in defending his views, with a civic courage that has often made him the target of the mediocre.
For his rare artistic qualities, as well as for his dignified works, he was honored with the title of "People's Artist" in 1987 and with the career cup at the 10th Albanian Film Festival. The year 1991 finds him committed to the democratic movement for pluralism in Albania, a motive for which he is also elected as a deputy of the Democratic Party in the Albanian Parliament (1991-1996). On April 12, 1992, he was appointed Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, a post he held until December 4, 1994, when he resigned.
Anagnosti is the creator and president of the Foundation for Art and Culture "Fan Noli", supporting the most active intellectuals, committed to strengthening Albanian culture in the country and in the world. In 2001, he wrote and staged at the National Theater the only play "The Night of Knocks on the Glass". While in 2005 he achieved success with his latest film "Gjoleka, djali i Abazit", a film honored with two international awards in Italy.
Anagnosti was married to Albanian screen actress, "Merited Artist" Roza Anagnosti.
