Vera Tschechowa

Vera Tschechowa is an elegant green-eyed film and television actress and director of German-Russian descent. He grandfather was Oscar-nominated Russian-American actor Michael Chekhov who was the nephew of writer Anton Chekhov. She was born Vera Tschechowa on July 22, 1940, in Berlin. Her father was Dr. Wilhelm Rust, and her mother was actress and agent Ada Tschechowa. Young Vera Tschechowa was brought up in Germany by her Russian-German grandmother, a silent film actress Olga Tschechowa. Her early childhood was affected by the Second World War. During the late 1940s and early 1950s she spent much time with her grandfather, Michael Chekhov in California, and also traveled in the United States. She started education as an artist and stage designer, then studied acting at Munich Drama school. Eventually she followed the footsteps of her mother and grandmother and became an actress. In 1956 she made her film debut in 'Witwer mit funf Tochtern', a film by director Heinz Erhardt. In 1959 she made her stage debut at Berlin Theater, then worked on stage at Deutsche Schauspielhaus Hamburg, and also at Dusseldorfer Schauspielhaus and at Theater Basel. In 1962 she received German National Film Award for her work in 'Das Brot der Fruhen Jahre'. Vera Tschechowa has been enjoying a formidable film career as an actress as well as a director. She played over 30 roles in feature films, and made numerous appearances on television in several countries of Europe. In 1977 she received the Goldene Camera award for her role in the ZDF production 'Zeit der Emphindsamkeit'. She also appeared as herself in Chekov in My Life (1984 documentary) directed by her husband Vadim Glowna. In the 1990s and 2000s Vera Tschechowa has become known as a director of movie portraits, such as of Klaus Maria Brandauer (1994), Anthony Quinn (1997), and Robert Redford among her other works. In 2006 she presented her film-portrait about the Makhmalbaf family of filmmakers at the Munchner Filmfest. She speaks four languages: German, English, French and Russian.