Mati Unt


Mati Unt was an Estonian writer, essayist and theatre director.

Biography

His first novel, written at the age of 18 after having finished high school, was Hüvasti, kollane kass. He completed his education in literature, journalism, and philology at the University of Tartu. After that, he served as director of the Vanemuine Theater from 1966 to 1972, held the same position at the Youth Theater until 1991, and then at the Estonian Drama Theatre until 2003, when he became a freelance writer.
Unt was married to the television journalist and screenwriter Ela Tomson from 1965, until their divorce in 1973.
He joined the Estonian Writers' Union in 1966. In 1980, he was named an Honored Writer of the Estonian SSR, and that same year he became one of the signatories to the Letter of 40 intellectuals. In 2000, he was awarded the Order of the White Star.
In 2005, not long before his death, he became a professor of liberal arts at the university. He is buried in Metsakalmistu cemetery in Tallinn.

Works

Four successive novels, Võlg, Elu võimalikkusest kosmoses, Kuu nagu kustuv päike, and Must mootorrattur, established his reputation as a major writer. In addition, he was instrumental in bringing avant-garde theatre to post-Soviet Estonia.
Several of his novels have been adapted for film since his death, including Sügisball in 2007 by Veiko Õunpuu.

English translations

Things in the Night Translated by Eric Dickens. Normal, IL: Dalkey Archive Press, 2006. Diary of a Blood Donor Translated by Ants Eert. Champaign, IL: Dalkey Archive Press, 2008. Brecht at Night Translated by Eric Dickens. Champaign, IL: Dalkey Archive Press, 2009.