Martin Štrba ranks among the most significant figures in Slovak and Czech cinema. His name is inseparably linked with the evolution of film language after 1989 and, thanks to his meticulous visual craft, artistic sensitivity and distinctive visual signature, he has become one of the most respected cinematographers in Central Europe.
He began his artistic journey at the Secondary School of Applied Arts in Bratislava, where he studied photography from 1976 to 1980. From there he went on to Prague’s FAMU, graduating from the Department of Cinematography in 1985.
Collaboration with prominent directors occupies a major place in his filmography. Together with his longtime friend Martin Šulík he created a string of visual gems now regarded as treasures of Slovak cinema: Tenderness, Everything I Like, The Garden, Orbis Pictus, Landscape, The City of the Sun and The Interpreter. With Czech director Vladimír Michálek he worked on titles such as Sekal Has to Die, Autumn Spring, Angel Exit and Of Parents and Children.
“There is always a certain tension between director and cinematographer—two different viewpoints on the same thing. When those two people find common ground, something extraordinary always emerges,” Martin Štrba said in an IFF Art Film interview.
His work with Agnieszka Holland is equally noteworthy (Burning Bush, Charlatan, Jánošík. The True Story). According to the award-winning cinematographer, one of his greatest filmmaking experiences was his collaboration with Slovak director Iveta Grófová on The Hungarian Dressmaker.
Martin Štrba’s work unites technical precision with visual poetry. “In the dialogue between director and cinematographer, literature—meaning the script—is transformed into images. But the creative process also involves equal communication with the production designer, costume designers, make-up artists and other visual artists. In my camera crew there are always people who hold me up—they’re far more technically skilled than I am,” Štrba explains, adding: “I have to perceive the camera as a camera obscura—an opening in its most primitive simplicity. For me it’s a hole that flips reality upside down and records it on a sensitive layer. Everything important around it is handled by the team. As chief cinematographer I need a first AC, a focus-puller, a gaffer or a dolly grip. Often these are young, very talented guys and girls. I’m lucky to be surrounded by them, which allows me to concentrate solely on the essence of the film image, on atmosphere and camera movement.”
Martin Štrba shared his experience with visitors to IFF Art Film Košice during a specialist masterclass focused on his authorial work and the transformations of domestic cinematography. Asked how he felt at Art Film, he replied: “The festival environment is sacred to me. Where else can a person absorb so many wonderful ideas from every corner of the world as at a film festival?”
Martin Štrba has received a host of prestigious awards for his work. In 2021 he was inducted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which presents the Oscars. At the closing ceremony of the 31st International Film Festival Art Film in Košice, he was presented with one of Slovakia’s most prestigious honours—the Golden Camera—for his outstanding and long-term artistic contribution to Slovak and Czech cinema.
The 31st IFF ART FILM is made possible thanks to the support of:
Organizer: ART FILM FEST s.r.o.
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