Miloš Forman: Between Europe and Hollywood

Symposium organized by the Department of Theatre and Film Studies, Palacký University Olomouc, Czech Republic
Friday, April 24, 2026
Univerzitní 3, Olomouc, Czech Republic

The symposium “Miloš Forman: Between Europe and Hollywood” aims to bring together Czech and international scholars, film professionals, and students interested in the life and work of one of the most significant filmmakers of the 20th century. The event will provide a platform for reflecting on Forman’s artistic legacy and his position within both Czech/Czechoslovak and global cinema. It will also foster discussion on the broader cultural, political, and social contexts in which his work was created and received. The symposium seeks to encourage dialogue across generations of researchers, connect academic perspectives with practical filmmaking experience, and introduce new interpretive frameworks for understanding Forman’s oeuvre in the context of contemporary society. Ideally, this exchange of ideas and networking will inspire future academic and non-academic collaborations and projects.

There are two modes of participation:

1. With a presentation: a 15-minute paper based on an abstract accepted by the organizers;
2. Without a presentation: participation in open workshops and panel discussions.

There is no participation fee, and light refreshments will be provided.

Topics may include (but are not limited to):

• Forman and other luminaries from his childhood and youth: Havel, Kundera etc.
• Forman and 1950s Czechoslovak cinema: early scripts and popular genres
• Forman and the Czechoslovak New Wave: FAMU years, 1960s film culture, intergenerational dialogue
• Forman’s Hollywood period: adaptation, production conditions, identity in exile
• Forman’s working methods and formal aspects of his films: work with non-actors, humor, improvisation, use of music
• Thematic concerns in his films: freedom, conformity and rebellion; youth and the parent generation etc.
• Biographical aspects: personal experience with totalitarianism, emigration, and the American dream; childhood trauma (loss of parents etc.), revelations about his biological father and his Jewish ancestry
• Forman and literary adaptations
• Reception of Forman’s films in Czechoslovakia/Czechia, the United States and elsewhere
• Forman, Czechoslovak film exports and awards; Forman’s films at festivals
• Key collaborations (Jaroslav Papoušek, Ivan Passer, Miroslav Ondříček, Jean-Claude Carrière, etc.)
• Forman and women: Jana Brejchová, Věra Křesadlová, Martina Formanová and others
• Forman’s short films and television productions
• Forman and the theatre: amateur theatre, Laterna magika, Semafor, A Walk Worthwhile
• Unrealized projects
• Forman’s legacy in contemporary cinema
• Forman as an actor in others’ films
• Forman as a storyteller: Turnaround: A Memoir, Forman in documentaries
• Forman as a teacher: his work at Columbia University
• Forman as a subject of academic and popular publications

Languages: Czech and English

If you are interested in participating, please complete the registration form here (https://forms.gle/kuai6HNNfMYUV1fP7) by January 31, 2026. The notifications of acceptance and organizational details will be mailed no later than February 20, 2026.

Organizers:
Milan Hain, Department of Theatre and Film Studies, Palacký University, milan.hain@upol.cz. Peter Krämer, De Montfort University, P.Kramer@uea.ac.uk.

The event is organized as part of the Czech Science Foundation project “Miloš Forman: The Construction of Film Authorship Across Two Continents,” grant number 25-17902S, 2025–2027.