Zuzana Piussi (born 21 October 1971 in Bratislava) is a Slovak director and documentary filmmaker, as well as an actress.Zuzana Uličianska, "Od Piussi do Piussi - slabý hlas, ktorý výrazne počuť (From Piussi to Piussi - faint voice that is plainly heard)," interview with Susan Piussi, in: SME, Dec. 21, 2012 She graduated from the Department of Directing at the Film and Television Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava.Matej Adamov, "Režisérka Zuzana Piussi (The Film Director Susan Piussi)", in:TNU trendy, Časopis o živote študentov a učitel'ov Trenčianskej Univerzity Alexandra Dubčeka, ročnik 2/ čislo 2, 2013, p.23. – Also online: From 1992 to 2000, she worked with the theater Stoka. Subsequently, she was involved in the theater project SkRAT.Zuzana Uličianska, "Od Piussi do Piussi - slabý hlas, ktorý výrazne počuť (From Piussi to Piussi - faint voice that is plainly heard)," interview with Susan Piussi, in: SME, Dec. 21, 2012
Piussi's start as a documentary filmmaker
Piussi's first documentary, Výmet (Wipe out) (2003) received a major trophy at the IFF in Beirut, Lebanon's oldest and best-known film festival and one of the important Arab film festivals.kul (i.e., culture page editor), "Cena pre Zuzanu Piussi. Slovenská dokumentaristka získala Cenu Andreja Stankoviča (Prize for Susan Piussi. Slovak documentarist was awarded the Andrej Stankovič prize)" in: SME, June 27, 2013. Two years later, her documentary feature "Anjeli plačú" (Angels Cry) (2005) was the favorite of cineasts at the International Documentary Film Festival in Jihlava (Czech Republic) and earned her the "Audience Award."kul (i.e., culture page editor), "Cena pre Zuzanu Piussi. Slovenská dokumentaristka získala Cenu Andreja Stankoviča (Prize for Susan Piussi. Slovak documentarist was awarded the Andrej Stankovič prize)" in: SME, June 27, 2013.
In 2008, Piussi's semi-documentary Babička (Grandmother) received media attention because it told the story "of an aging woman" who does not "want to give up love life."kk, "Zuzana Piussi predstaví voyerský dokument o zrelej žene a mladíkoch (Susan Piussi presents a voyeuristic documentary about a mature woman and young men)," in: SME, March 8, 2010. Her ad lets her meet young men.Iris Kopcsayová, "Mierne zvrhlá babička. V Prahe mal premiéru film Babička. Nie je to čistý dokument, ale nie je to ani fikcia (Slightly kinky granny: In Prague, the film "Grandmother" premiered. It is not a pure documentary, but it's neither a fiction.)," in: SME, March 2, 2009, culture page.
A year later, the filmmaker tackled a traumatic topic with her documentary Koliba (2009). The film focuses on the scandalous way Koliba, the Slovak national film studios, were privatized and stolen away.Miloš Krekovič commented, "It was our national treasure, say those who weep for it. (...) During 53 years, 331 feature films were made here. Today the site is home of a private television company and films made in Slovakia are sent abroad for processing. How could this happen? The filmmakers bear part of the guilt, too, for failing to prevent the privatization with a disastrous ending, we learn in this documentary." Miloš Krekovič, "Kto rozkradol Kolibu? (Who did steal Koliba away?)," in: Sme, March 25, 2009, culture page.
In that same year, Susan Piussi also created a portrait of Pavel Branko entitled Hrdina našich čias (A Hero of Our Time). The title refers to Lermontov's novel and Branko's view of himself as "a superfluous man."Andreas Weiland, "Svet plný krásy – a nad priepasťou (A world of beauty – and at the edge of the abyss)," in: Kino-Ikon, A Journal for the Sciences of the Moving Image and Cinema, Vol. 16, No.1, 2012, pp.212-218.
The Disease of the Third Power
In 2011, she made the documentary film Disease of the Third Power that explores the current state of affairs at the top level of the Slovak judiciary. Claiming breach of confidentiality because her voice was heard and because her (blurred) face was seen in the documentary, Judge Helena Kožíková demanded compensation of 30 thousand euros.Filmárke hrozí väzenie, sudkyni sa nepáčil dokument (Filmmaker faces imprisonment, the judge did not like the documentary)", in: SME.sk, Oct. 29, 2012. (also online). As The Slovak Spectator noted, Kožíková is "a former member of the Judicial Council, Slovakia's top judicial body."The Slovak Spectator, Jan. 21, 2013. The prosecution started a protracted investigation, charging "violation of confidentiality of verbal expression in an (allegedly) private conversation."The Slovak Spectator, Jan. 21, 2013. In October 2012, Czech artists declared their support for the filmmaker, petitioning Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Slovakia: "Mr. Fico, let Susan Piussi alone!"Veronika Prušová, "Za filmárku Piussi sa prihovoril u Fica český underground (Czech underground put in a word for filmmaker Piussi, turning to premier Fico)," in: SME, Oct.30, 2012. According to the Bratislava SME (newspaper), "about seventy artists, many of them in the past dissidents and political prisoners, responded to the fact that the filmmaker is facing imprisonment for a documentary about the Judiciary (...)."Veronika Prušová, ibidem.
The case of the filmmaker was taken up by the Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg. "She has made a great movie," he said. "If you will be punishing her for it, you go back 25 years in time," he said.Filmárke hrozí väzenie, sudkyni sa nepáčil dokument (Filmmaker faces imprisonment, the judge did not like the documentary)", in: SME.sk, Oct. 29, 2012. Citing the SITA news agency, SME reported on November 16, 2012 that the Ministry of Justice had stopped the charge against Susan Piussi.SITA news agency, "Borec: V kauze Piussi stojím na strane slobody prejavu: Pre film Nemoc tretej moci od Zuzany Piussi zatiaľ nikoho neobvinili. Minister spravodlivosti sa autorky zastal. (Borec: Regarding the Piussi affair, I stand for freedom of expression: Because of the film Disease of the Third Power by Susan Piussi nobody has been charged as yet. The Minister of Justice stood up for the filmmaker, " in: SME, Nov. 16, 2012. Three days later, the Prague daily Respekt published an article entitled "The crooked judges of Slovakia."Martin M. Šimečka, "The crooked judges of Slovakia," in: Respekt (Prague), Nov. 19, 2012. (Translated from the Czech by Anton Baer ). See also: Martin M. Šimečka, "A Gorilla tearing down the system," in: Respekt (Prague), Feb. 1, 2012. (Translated from the Czech by Anton Baer. - Both article supply useful background information. Piussi was facing the possibility of two years in jail plus compensation payment to judge Kožíková, the press reported. When prosecution was still carrying on the investigation after two years and three months without tangible results, this was criticized in the press as a form of "bullying" the film director. In December 2012, SME reported that members of Parliament were invited to see "The Disease of the Third Power" but few came, among them MEP Andrej Hrnčiar from Most who said that the current situation in the judiciary brings to mind the period of 'Meciarism'.TASR+ SITA (News agencies), "Film o justícii od Piussi si prišlo pozrieť len zopár poslancov (Only a few members of parliament came to see a film about the judiciary by Piussi)," in: SME, Dec. 18, 2012. - The term Meciarism refers to the situation encountered in Slovakia under Vladimír Mečiar. In January 2013, the police investigation against Piussi was stopped.SITA News agency, "Prosecution of filmmaker Zuzana Piussi halted," in: The Slovak Spectator, Jan. 21, 2013 According to the film director, this was due to pressure from the media and the fact that nearly 3,000 people signed a petition.Miroslav Kern, Nestíhajú už ani pre film Zuzany Piussi. Tlak médií má význam, tvrdí. There is no prosecution as yet, in the case of Susan Piussi's picture. Media pressure makes sense, she claims. SME, Jan. 18, 2013.
From Fico to Fico and Fragile Identity
Despite the pressure inflicted on her, Piussi made two documentaries in 2012, Od Fica do Fica (From Fico to Fico) and Krehká identita (Fragile Identity), which is about the appearance or re-emergence of a questionable "nationalism" in multi-lingual and multi-cultural Slovakia. As Kristína Kúdelová pointed out, From Fico to Fico is a film that "explores the organizational background of the Gorilla protests" in Slovakia whereas Fragile Identity "was looking for the reason why idealistic patriotism turns into a dangerous nationalism (...)."Kristína Kúdelová, "Filmom roka je dokument Zuzany Piussi 'Od Fica do Fica' (The Documentary 'From Fico to Fico' by Susan Piussi is the picture of the year)", in: SME, Dec.17, 2012, culture page.
The film From Fico to Fico was rejected by Slovak multiplex cinemas but could finally be screened in smaller film theaters and it is also available on the Internet.Miloš Krekovič, Od Fica do Fica. Aký je film, ktorý sa stal kauzou (From Fico to Fico. What kind of a movie became a scandal). Bratislava: Petit Press, Nov. 20, 2012. Available on the internet, From Fico to Fico immediately found a large audience. According to Denisa Štrbová, "the new film is even more controversial than the previous one." She quoted Filip Kršák, spokesman of DAFilms, as saying that "this film is a fundamental report about present Slovakia and unfortunately not an optimistic one. The film is the director's response to all who wanted to silence her."Denisa Štrbová, "Controversial Slovak docmaker Zuzana Piussi hits back with new online doc release," in:
In view of the filmmaker's penchant to tackle risky subjects, Zuzana Mojžišová called Susan Piussi the "Guerilla Girl of Slovak film" in a review that appeared in the Slovak weekly .týždeň.Zuzana Mojžišová, Guerilla girl slovenského filmu (Guerilla girl of Slovak cinema), in: .týždeň (A Bratislava weekly; editor-in-chief: Štefan Hríb; published by PRESS W), No. 48/2012, p.47. - .
In December 2012, From Fico to Fico won the SME survey that determined the most significant cultural event of the year, in the category film.Kristína Kúdelová, Filmom roka je dokument Zuzany Piussi Od Fica do Fica (Documentary of the year: Susan Piussi's From Fico to Fico). Bratislava. Petit Press, Dec. 17, 2012. The two documentary films completed by her in 2012 (Disease of the Third Power and Fragile Identity) also reached rank 4 and 5 respectively in a survey of nearly 300 people who work professionally in the field of culture.Kristína Kúdelová, ibidem.
Still in December 2012, Fragile Identity won the first prize in the 13th documentary film festival Jeden svet (One World), 2012.Eva Sládková, Víťazom festivalu Jeden svet je Krehká identita (The winner of the One World Festival is Fragile Identity. Bratislava filmpress.sk, Dec. 10, 2012.
In 2013, Piussi received the Andrej Stankovič Prize for her most recent documentary, "Fragile Identity."kul (i.e., culture page editor), "Cena pre Zuzanu Piussi. Slovenská dokumentaristka získala Cenu Andreja Stankoviča (Prize for Susan Piussi. Slovak documentarist was awarded the Andrej Stankovič prize)" in: SME, June 27, 2013.
How Piussi works
as revealed in an interview