Talk:Barbora Kodetová

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Barbara Kodetova is a renowned Czech actress who has tackled roles in works ranging from Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams to Vaclav Havel — and now Frank Herbert's Dune, in which she stars as Chani.

Kodetova has starred in numerous productions for the Czech National Theater, Czech television, and the Czech and Italian cinema. Kodetova also regularly does radio work and voice-overs for films.

Landing the role of Chani, Kodetova explained, was a surprising experience. After not hearing back after the audition for several weeks, she assumed the role was not hers: "I thought, 'OK, it was just another audition. I'll go back to the theater...'" But little did she know that the Czech theater would have to wait: Her showreel had already hooked the director.

When the casting office called to say that they were interested, Kodetova said, "I felt like I was in a fairy tale. I could not believe that I could have the opportunity to work with these people — that I could have such luck," Kodetova said.

Kodetova studied drama at the esteemed Prague Conservatory and joined the National Theater after graduation. She hails from a venerable family of thespians: she belongs to her family's sixth generation of performers. Her father, Jiri Kodet, has won two Czech Lion awards (the Czech equivalent of the American Oscar) for his acting. Kodetova's is a known face and name in the Czech Republic, a country of 10 million.

"It's not easy to work in the Czech Republic with the name I have," she said. "So to John (Harrison) and everybody on Dune, I was just me. And that was so helpful for my self-confidence."

Kodetova, who is fluent in English, read Frank Herbert's novel and familiarized herself with the terminology of Dune before filming began. The word she most hated mastering was "offworlders," because the Czech language has neither the letter "w" nor the phoneme "erl," as in "world." A native English speaker's equivalent dilemma would be trying to pronounce "zmrzlina," the Czech word for ice cream.

The Czech actor has lent her talents to numerous productions for cinema, television and theater. Since appearing as Chani in Frank Herbert's Dune, Kodetova has given birth to a daughter.

Among her credits are the short film Den Starkare ("The Stronger"), directed by Swede Minna Göransdotter. Kodetova's work in that film led to her being cast as Chani in the first Dune miniseries. She also acted in the Slovak film Rivers of Babylon, based on a best-selling Slovak novel; and Ucitel Tance ("The Dance Master"), directed by Jaromil Jires.

Kodetova has tackled roles by scribes ranging from Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams to Vaclav Havel, the former communist dissident-turned-Czech Republic president. She has starred in numerous productions for the Czech National Theater, Czech television, and the Czech and Italian cinema. Kodetova also regularly does radio work and voice-overs for films.

(This is the remainder text from the article. I will edit and revise to fit WP:POV tonight.  --Vortex (talk) 18:02, 18 February 2009 (UTC)