Robert Buchar


Robert Buchar is an American cinematographer, filmmaker, film director and producer, born in 1951 in Hradec Králové, former Czechoslovakia.
In 1966, he came to Prague to study photography at the Secondary School of Graphic Arts, and cinematography at FAMU, the Film and TV School of The [Academy of Performing Arts in Prague|Film Academy of Fine Arts], where he graduated as M.F.A. in 1975. He worked as a cinematographer mainly for the documentary section of Krátký film, before defecting to the United States in 1980. There he worked as a cameraman for CBS until 1989, photographed over twenty films and documentaries in the U.S. and Europe. He also works as director of photography on independent films and commercials.
Since 1989, he teaches cinematography at the Columbia College in Chicago, where he became head of the Cinematography Concentration, the faculty's cinematography program, an advanced production course he developed.

Documentary features

Velvet Hangover

His, and David Smith's, feature-length documentary film Velvet Hangover about the Czech New Wave and the Czech film industry before and after the Velvet Revolution was screened in film festivals around the world. Some of the critics' appraisals:
Featuring in Velvet Hangover :

The Collapse of Communism – The Untold Story

Currently Buchar's another documentary The Collapse of Communism – The Untold Story is in postproduction. According to some critics, it showcases the KGB's orchestration and management of the breakup of the Soviet Union. According to some critics, it promotes a conspiracy theory that the fall of communism in Eastern Europe was a hoax. Buchar's own view :
Featuring in The Collapse of Communism :


Filmography

documentaries, feature-length, also as director / producerVelvet Hangover, together with David Smith, 1999/2000, USAThe Collapse of Communism – The Untold Story, 2009/2010, USA
other, as director of photographyFour Seasons, 2008Bear Not to Be, 1968Certainly, 1969The Club, 1971In the Sign of Eagle, 1978The Comets, 1979City in the Center of the City, 1979Ethology of Animals, 1980Basic Meditation Exercise, directed by George Drasnar , 1981Go West-Sing West, 1991Where are you, 1992The Land of Youth, 1992Granny, 1998Poslední z rodu, directed by Drahomíra Vihanová, Czechoslovakia, 1977

Books

Czech New Wave Filmmakers in Interviews, foreword by Antonin J. Liehm, McFarland & Company, 2003 And Reality be Damned... December 2009, Eloquent Strategic Publishing
in Czech: Revoluce 1989 – utajené informace ze zákulisí, Brána, 2009
;professional:Design of the photographic and the cinematographic image, with Jan Smok, Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, Prague 2001
  • ''The Spotmeter and its application in cinematography and video''