Milena Dravić (pronounced [mǐlena drǎːvit͡ɕ]; Serbian Cyrillic: Милена Дравић; 5 October 1940 – 14 October 2018) was a famous Serbian actress.

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Biography

Born in Belgrade, Dravić was involved with the performing arts from the age of four: at first with dance and later classical ballet.  In 1959, while in high school, director František Čapsaw her [2] on the cover of a youth magazine in a ballet dancers' group photo and decided to approach her about being in his film Vrata ostaju otvorena. After appearing in a few more films, she decided to pursue acting full-time and successfully enrolled in Belgrade's Dramatic Arts Academy.

Her big break came in 1962 when she won the Golden Arena for Best Actress (which was the Yugoslav equivalent of an Academy Award) for her role in Branko Bauer's film Prekobrojna. This was what propelled her to becoming Yugoslavia's first and arguably biggest female movie star. She was recipient of five Silver arenas (for supporting actress roles) and 2 Golden arenas (for leading actress roles). 

Milena Dravić's career has been long, prolific and versatile. She was memorable and believable, whether as the tragic heroine in state-sponsored World War II epics, the eccentric protagonist of experimental arthouse films like WR: Mysteries of the Organism or in romantic comedies. She especially excelled in the latter during the 1970s and 1980s. She won the Cannes Best Supporting Actress Award in 1980 for Special Treatment. 

For her roles and contributions to domestic cinematography, she received the prestigious Pavle VujisićAward in August 1994. 

On 15 December she was honored with the prestigious Dobričin prsten lifetime achievement award in Belgrade for her rich career and achievements. 

Selected filmography

• The First Fires (1961)
• Kozara (1962)
• Destination Death (1964)
• Man is Not a Bird (1965)
• The Camp Followers (1965)
• Looking Into the Eyes of the Sun (1966)
• Rondo (1966)
• The Battle of Neretva (1969)
• Touha zvaná Anada (1969)
• W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism (1971)
• The Role of My Family in the Revolution (1971)
• The Battle of Sutjeska (1973)
• Acting Hamlet in the Village of Mrdusa Donja (1974)
• Special Treatment (1980)
• Three Summer Days (1997)
• Cabaret Balkan (1998)
• Sky Hook (1999)
• Love and Other Crimes (2008)
• St. George Shoots the Dragon (2009)

Death

She passed away on 14 October 2018, after a long battle with illness.

Personal life

Milena Dravić has been married three times. Her third husband was the prominent Serbian actor Dragan Nikolić, with whom she had co-hosted the popular 1970s television program Obraz uz obraz.