Zora Kerova
Encyclopedia
Zora Ulla Keslerová is a Czech actress, dancer, singer, and model. She is best known for starring in cult horror classics Antropophagus, Cannibal Ferox
, and The New York Ripper
.
, Czechoslovakia
. She began her career as a cultural dancer and singer, she later became a model. Her career expanded and she decided to become an actress. She immediately began her acting career in Italian cinema, in 1978, she made her acting debut in La Febbre Americana, in which her co-star was Italian actor and writer George Eastman
, whom she had worked with in later films. In 1979, Zora starred in the Czech film Krehké Vztahy (The Fragile Relations), a psychological drama, in which she played a divorced mother. The film was not a success at the time. What followed was a string of minor roles in various films.
Italian cinema offered more for her career, she became a star in Italy under several names including Zora Kerowa and Zora Keer. She appeared in many erotic, action, and of course horror films throughout the eighties. Apart from her roles in erotic films, Zora is remembered for starring in three cult horror classics, in 1980, she played psychic "Carol" in Antropophagus, where she and a group of people head to an island, in which Carol feels there is something evil on it, and the group is one-by-one murdered by a madman who stalks the island. Zora again worked with George Eastman in Antropophagus, and in a 2005 interview alongside Eastman, Kerova explains that she never really got to know director Joe D'Amato
on the set of the film, and how she learned phonetic English by listening to The Beatles. In 1981, she starred as "Pat Johnson" in Cannibal Ferox, in which she was probably the best character in the film, as she is seen hanging on hooks by her breasts. And, in 1982, she played "Eva" in The New York Ripper, in which she smashes glass into a maniac's groin. Throughout her acting career she has worked with such directors as, Joe D'Amato, Umberto Lenzi
, Lucio Fulci
, and Ferdinando Baldi
. Her final film came in 1996 with Papà dice messa, but did make a brief return to acting in 2006 with the straight-to-video film La Radice del Male (The Root of Evil).
Cannibal Ferox
Cannibal Ferox, also known as Make Them Die Slowly, is a 1981 Italian exploitation film written and directed by Umberto Lenzi. Upon its release, the film made claims to being "The most violent film ever made"...
, and The New York Ripper
The New York Ripper
The New York Ripper, original title Lo squartatore di New York, is a 1982 Italian horror film directed and co-written by Lucio Fulci.The film score was written by Francesco De Masi...
.
Life and career
Zora Kerova was born in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. She began her career as a cultural dancer and singer, she later became a model. Her career expanded and she decided to become an actress. She immediately began her acting career in Italian cinema, in 1978, she made her acting debut in La Febbre Americana, in which her co-star was Italian actor and writer George Eastman
George Eastman
George Eastman was an American innovator and entrepreneur who founded the Eastman Kodak Company and invented roll film, helping to bring photography to the mainstream...
, whom she had worked with in later films. In 1979, Zora starred in the Czech film Krehké Vztahy (The Fragile Relations), a psychological drama, in which she played a divorced mother. The film was not a success at the time. What followed was a string of minor roles in various films.
Italian cinema offered more for her career, she became a star in Italy under several names including Zora Kerowa and Zora Keer. She appeared in many erotic, action, and of course horror films throughout the eighties. Apart from her roles in erotic films, Zora is remembered for starring in three cult horror classics, in 1980, she played psychic "Carol" in Antropophagus, where she and a group of people head to an island, in which Carol feels there is something evil on it, and the group is one-by-one murdered by a madman who stalks the island. Zora again worked with George Eastman in Antropophagus, and in a 2005 interview alongside Eastman, Kerova explains that she never really got to know director Joe D'Amato
Joe D'Amato
Joe D'Amato, was a prolific Italian filmmaker who directed roughly 200 films, usually at the same time acting as producer and cinematographer, and sometimes providing the script as well...
on the set of the film, and how she learned phonetic English by listening to The Beatles. In 1981, she starred as "Pat Johnson" in Cannibal Ferox, in which she was probably the best character in the film, as she is seen hanging on hooks by her breasts. And, in 1982, she played "Eva" in The New York Ripper, in which she smashes glass into a maniac's groin. Throughout her acting career she has worked with such directors as, Joe D'Amato, Umberto Lenzi
Umberto Lenzi
Umberto Lenzi , is an Italian film director who was very active in low budget crime films, peplums, spaghetti westerns, war movies, cannibal films and giallo murder mysteries ....
, Lucio Fulci
Lucio Fulci
Lucio Fulci was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is perhaps best known for his directorial work on gore films, including Zombie and The Beyond , although he made films in genres as diverse as giallo, western, and comedy...
, and Ferdinando Baldi
Ferdinando Baldi
Ferdinando Baldi was an Italian film director, film producer and screenwriter. He was born on 19 May 1927 in Cava dei Tirreni, in the Province of Salerno.-Career:...
. Her final film came in 1996 with Papà dice messa, but did make a brief return to acting in 2006 with the straight-to-video film La Radice del Male (The Root of Evil).
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 1978 in film The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 1 - Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour premieres in Los Angeles, California.... |
La Febbre Americana | Lisa | |
| Le Evase - Storie di Sesso e di Violenze | Anna | Other title: Jailbirds (credited as Zora Keer) | |
| 1979 1979 in film The year 1979 in film involved some significant events.- Major events :* March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.* May 25 - Alien, a landmark of the science fiction genre, is released.... |
Krehké Vztahy | Bára | Other title: The Fragile Relations (credited as Zora Ulla Kesslerová) |
| Terror Express | Anna | ||
| 1980 1980 in film - Events :* May 21 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is released and is the biggest grosser of the year .... |
La Filles de Madame Claude | Nathalie | Other title: Gift Girls (cerdited as Zora Kerowa) |
| La Vera Storia della Monaca di Monza | Sister Virginia de Leyva | Other title: The True Story of the Nun of Monza | |
| Antropophagus | Carol | Other title: Anthropophagus: The Grim Reaper | |
| 1981 1981 in film -Events:*January 19 - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleaguered concurrent United Artists. UA was humiliated by the astronomical losses on the $40,000,000 movie Heaven's Gate, a major factor in the decision of owner Transamerica to sell it.... |
Retez | Marta | |
| Cannibal Ferox Cannibal Ferox Cannibal Ferox, also known as Make Them Die Slowly, is a 1981 Italian exploitation film written and directed by Umberto Lenzi. Upon its release, the film made claims to being "The most violent film ever made"... |
Pat Johnson | Other title: Make Them Die Slowly (credited as Zora Kerowa) | |
| 1982 1982 in film -Events:* March 26 = I Ought to Be in Pictures, starring Walter Matthau, Ann-Margret and Dinah Manoff is released. Manoff would not appear in another movie until 1987's Backfire.* June = PG-rated film E.T... |
Vítr v Kapse | Ilonka | (credited as Zora-Ulla Kesslerová) |
| I Nuovi Barbari | Other Title: The New Barbarians | ||
| Lo Squartatore di New York The New York Ripper The New York Ripper, original title Lo squartatore di New York, is a 1982 Italian horror film directed and co-written by Lucio Fulci.The film score was written by Francesco De Masi... |
Eva | Other title: The New York Ripper (credited as Zora Kerowa) | |
| Sny o Zambezi | Other title: Dreams About Zambezia | ||
| Liquid Sky Liquid Sky Liquid Sky is an independent American film. It debuted at the Montreal Film festival in August 1982 and was well received at several film festivals thereafter. It was produced with a budget of $500,000. It became the most successful independent film of 1983 grossing $1.7 million dollars in the... |
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| 1983 1983 in film -Events:*February 11 - The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together opens in New York*May 25 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the final film in the original Star Wars trilogy, is released. Like the previous films, it goes on to become the top grossing picture of... |
Andel s Dáblem v Tele | Zanet Azárt | |
| 1984 1984 in film -Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film.... |
Fesák Hubert | Ruza | (credited as Zora-Ulla Keslerová) |
| 1985 1985 in film -Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out Of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.* Bliss wins AFI Award for best Movie... |
Perinbaba | ||
| 1988 1988 in film -Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:* Act of Piracy* Action Jackson, starring Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Vanity, Sharon Stone* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* Akira* Alice... |
Quandro Alice Ruppee lo Specchio | Virginia Field | (credited as Zora Ulla Kesler) |
| Il Fantasma di Sodoma | Succubus | (uncredited) | |
| Andel Svádí Dábla | Zanet Azárt | (credited as Ulla Kesler) | |
| 1989 1989 in film -Events:* Batman is released on June 23, and goes on to gross over $410 million worldwide.* Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million... |
Luna di Sangue | Mary | (credited as Ulla Z. Kesler) |
| 1990 1990 in film The year 1990 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* CGI technique is expanded with motion capture for CGI characters, used in Total Recall .* The first digitally-manipulated matte painting is used, in Die Hard 2.... |
Hansel e Gretel | ||
| 1995 1995 in film -Top grossing films:-Events:* March 22 - The Dogme 95 movement is officially announced in Paris by Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg.* March 28 - Actress Julia Roberts and singer Lyle Lovett announce their plans for separation.... |
Mullo Tutto | ||
| Altrove | (credited as Ulla Zora Keselrova) | ||
| 1996 1996 in film Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:... |
Papá Dice Messa | ||
| 2006 2006 in film - Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006... |
La Radice del Male | direct-to-video |