Z obilo veselja in ponosa oznanjamo, da nas bo letos obiskal režiser, scenarist in dramski pisec Goran Marković, ki bo na festivalu prejel Hudega starega mačka za življenjsko delo. Njegovi filmi, kot so Tito in jaz, Že videno, Variola vera, Zbirni center in Nacionalni razred so dosegli kultni status ter postali del popularne kulture na področju nekdanje Jugoslavije, veliko pozornosti pa so bili deležni tudi v širšem evropskem prostoru. Njegov opus se odlikuje z raznolikostjo, saj se je preizkusil v številnih žanrih (seveda tudi v fantastiki in grozljivki), ki se v njegovih filmih pogosto prepletajo, stilsko pa se z izjemno suverenostjo giblje od asketskega dokumentarističnega pristopa do natančno domišljenih vizualnih bravur. Za vse njegove filme je značilno močno družbeno kritično sporočilo, ki skozi pogosto humorne pripovedi o neprilagojenih malih ljudeh, ki so le del disfunkcionalne, razpadajoče družbe, opozarja na družbene probleme, kot so mladoletno prestopništvo (Posebna vzgoja), socialne razlike v »brezrazredni« družbi (Nacionalni razred, Že videno), kriza in razpadanje sistema (Variola vera, Zbirni center) ali vsesplošna korupcija (Tajvanska kanasta).
Goran Marković je rojen leta 1946 v Beogradu. Filmsko režijo je doštudiral na znameniti akademiji FAMU v Pragi, kjer sta mu med drugimi predavala Milan Kundera in oskarjevec Elmar Klos. Po vrnitvi v Beograd je najprej več let delal na televiziji, kjer je posnel več kot 50 dokumentarcev. Leta 1977 je debitiral z dramo Posebna vzgoja, za katero je požel številne nagrade in naklonjenost občinstva, ki se je še povečalo z leta 1979 posneto komedijo Nacionalni razred. Po satiričnem Mojstri, mojstri (1980) je leta 1982 za pravi preplah poskrbela Variola vera, izjemen spoj filma katastrofe, grozljivke in drame, po komediji Tajvanska kanasta (1985) pa je leta 1987 posnel ultimativno jugoslovansko grozljivko Že videno, ki je svoje mesto našla tudi v svetovnih horror antologijah. Njegov zadnji film pred razpadom Jugoslavije je bila fantastična komedija Zbirni center (1989), ki ji je leta 1992 sledila nostalgična satira Tito in jaz. V letih, ki so sledila, se je Marković zaradi neugodnih razmer posvetil delu v gledališču in dokumentarcem, njegova družbena kritičnost pa je spričo strahot ob razpadu nekdanje skupne države postala še izrazitejša, kar je razvidno iz po prelomu tisočletja posnetih celovečercev Kordon (2001) in Turneja (2008). Za svoje delo je Marković prejel številne nagrade na domačih in mednarodnih festivalih. Je predavatelj na Fakulteti dramskih umetnosti v Beogradu in član bruseljske Evropske akademije za filmsko umetnost.
Častnemu gostu bomo nagrado podelili na zaključni slovesnosti Grossmann 2012. Občinstvu se bo predstavil tudi na posebnem pogovoru, seveda pa bomo prikazali tudi izbrano retrospektivo njegovih del. Več podrobnosti kmalu na teh straneh!

With enormous joy and pride we announce that we will be visited by director, scriptwriter and playwright Goran Marković who will receive this year's honorary Vicious Old Cat award for lifetime achievement. His films such as Tito and Me, Reflections, Variola Vera, The Meeting Point and National Class have achieved a cult status and became a part of popular culture in the ex-Yu region while also reaching wider European audience. His varied body of work features numerous different genres (including fantasy and horror, of course) which are often intertwined, while his style ranges from stripped down documentary approach to intricate visual wizardry. All of his films carry a strong social commentary, subtly delivered through frequently humorous stories of maladjusted individuals who are just a part of a dysfunctional, disintegrating society, and tackle sensitive issues such as juvenile delinquency (Special Education), social differences in a »classless« society (National Class,  Reflections), crisis and collapse of the system (Variola vera, The Meeting Point) and corruption (Taiwan Canasta).

Goran Marković was born in 1946 in Belgrade, Serbia. He graduated in film direction at the famous FAMU in Prague, where he was lectured by Milan Kundera and Oscar winner Elmar Klos. After returning to Belgrade he first worked for television where he made more than 50 documentaries. He made his feature debut in 1977 with drama Special Education that won numerous awards at international festivals and was a success with the audience as well. His next film, comedy National Class (1979) was also enthusiastically received. After satirical comedy All the Jacks (1980) he caused a genuine panic with Variola Vera (1982), an outstanding blend of disaster movie, horror and drama. He made another comedy, Taiwan Canasta in 1985, prior to making the ultimate Yugoslavian horror  Reflections (1987) which was also given an important place in foreign horror anthologies. His last film before the disintegration of Yugoslavia was fantastic comedy The Meeting Point which was followed by nostalgic Tito and Me in 1992. In years to follow, Marković turned to theatre and documentaries. His social criticism became even stronger in his post-millennium films such as The Cordon (2001) and The Tour (2009). This autumn will se the premiere of his new film The Forger. For his work he has received numerous awards at national and international festivals. He is a professor at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade and a member of the European Film Academy in Brussels.

Our guest of honour will be solemnly given his award at the closing ceremony of Grossmann 2012. He will also address our audience at a special Master Class while our retrospective section will feature a special selection of his films. More details coming soon!