Karl Anton or Karel Anton (25 October 1898 – 12 April 1979) was a Bohemian-born German film director, screenwriter, and film producer.

Biography

He was born in Prague on 25 October 1898. His father, Wilhelm Anton (1861–1918) was a physician. Anton studied medicine, but left school after his father's death. He started as a stage actor and director in Vienna, Linz and Prague. During the World War I, Anton made amateur documentaries with his friends Karel Lamač and Otto Heller. He directed his first movie, a lyrical drama Gypsies, in 1921. Anton is considered an early proponent of Czech lyrical cinema tradition. He founded his own production companies Antonfilm (1923–30) and Sonorfilm (1930–32). After the international success of Tonka of the Gallows he worked in Paris for Paramount Pictures from 1932 to 1935. After leaving Paramount he moved to Germany in 1935. He died in Berlin, Germany, in 1979. Czech actor Raoul Schránil was his cousin.

Selected filmography