Živko Anočić

As a student of acting in 2006, Anočić was hired by director and producer Matko Raguž to star in his original comedy SHAKEspeare na Exitu, about youthful and unconventional yet mature and respectful approaches to the works of the immortal bard, set to have its premier in the Exit Theatre in Zagreb. Starring alongside Jerko Marčić and Marko Makovičić, the play became a cult classic of the theatre, and went on to appear in other theatres in Croatia, including the Croatian National Theatre in Split, the Kerempuh Theatre and Rector's Palace in Dubrovnik. Alongside his costars, he won the 2007 Mostar Liska Award at the annual Theatre and Culture Festival.[3]

His next collaboration with the Exit Theatre came with the lead role in his brother's directorial experiment Kauboji. Starring Damir Klemenić, Saša Anočić, Matija Antolić, Hrvoje Barišić, Krunoslav Klabučar, Rakan Rushaidat, Radovan Ruždjak, Ivana Rushaidat and Anočić, Kauboji is widely considered the magnum opus of the Exit Theatre for its distinct and emotionally complex structure, unorthodox approach to narration and likeable characters.[4][5] On January 8 2020, they performed their 500th performance.[6] For his iconic performance, he won the Ivo Fici Award for Best Actor Under 28.

From 2006 to 2011, he was a member of the performing ensemble in the Trešnja Theatre in Zagreb where he performed in the productions of Beauty and the Beast, Hunchback of Notre Dame and Oliver Twist. During that time, he also performed as a guest in the ITD, Mala Scene, Žar Ptica, Kufer and Croatian National Theatre in Osijek.[7] In 2007, he won the Marul Award at the Split Summer Games for his lead role in Smisao života gospodina Lojtrice, as a collaboration with the Knapp Theatre.

Since 2011, after obtaining a degree in acting from the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Zagreb Anočić became employed as permanent member of the Gavella Drama Theatre Ensemble. His first performance was the supporting comic relief Pijero in the Marin Držić comedy Dundo Maroje.

He later starred in the theatre's productions of Othello, Three Sisters, U registraturi, Kiklop, Richard III, Platonov and Fine Dead Girls, establishing himself as a prolific and versatile comedic and dramatic actor.[8][9]

He received considerable praise for his interpretation of the eccentric, talkative Razumikhin in the Gavella production of the Dostoyevski novel Crime and Punishment, directed by Zlatko Sviben and starring alongside Franjo Dijak as Raskolnikov and Ozren Grabarić as Porfiry Petrovich.

He was awarded three Croatian Theatre Awards: the first one for his role in 2006's SHAKEspeare na Exitu, the second one for his portrayal of Karl Rossmann in 2014 and the third one for his performance as Ugo in the 2019 adaptation of the Ranko Marinković classic Cyclops.[10]

The Saša Anočić play Cowboys went on to become a critically and commercially successful feature-length film in 2013. Directed by Tomislav Mršić, the film won the Jury Gran Prix at the 2013 Pula Film Festival, the Audience Award at the Motovun Film Festival, the SEEFest Lead at the 2015 Nashville film Festival, the EuroAsia Kazakh Award for Best Foreign-Language Film, the Filmfest Hamburg Prize for Best Screenplay, the Czech FabioFest Award, the Apollo Grand Prize at the Novi Sad Film and Theatre Festival, among other accolades. It was also submitted to the 2015 Festroia International Film Festival.

Anočić also rose to continental prominence for his starring roles in 72 Days, Blurs and Duboki rezovi, the latter appearing with Mladen Vasary and Jadranka Đokić. He also gave a critically lauded portrayal of poet Ivan Goran Kovačić in the 2015 film Narodni heroj Ljiljan Vidić and appeared in a supporting role in the Golden Arena-winning film Osmi povjerenik.

In 2007, he starred in the Sara Hribar independent film Pusti me da spavam alongside Jadranka Đokić.

He portrayed the main antagonist, Majić, in the Antonio Nuić feature film Mali, which won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film.[11]

He is set to have appear in a role in the 2021 film Sixth Bus, alongside Ozren Grabarić and Toni Gojanović.[12]

He has appeared in supporting roles in popular televised series including Bibin svijet, Odmori se, zaslužio si and Ko te šiša. He performed the role of Rafaelo "Rafo" Janjić in the popular televised comedy Kad zvoni? and appeared on an episode of the children's show Žutokljunac.

In 2012, on behalf of Filip Šovagović's "Sova Zone" project, he appeared in the short-lived sitcom Špica[13] with Ornela Vištica, Mia Biondić, Nenad Cvetko, Ranko Zidarić, Luka Peroš, Jure Radnić, Vera Ana Goldstein and Ankica Dobrić in other roles.

In 2020, he was announced to play his first leading role on television; the title character in the Vinko Brešan-directed series Dnevnik velikog Perice.[14] The series, based on the Krešo Golik film Tko pjeva zlo ne misli will also feature appearances by Csilla Barath Bastajić, Dušan Bućan, Iva Babić, Mirjana Bohanec Vidović, Otokar Levaj, Nikola Kojo and Goran Navojec.

He also actively worked in radio, recording over a hundred radio dramas and narrated audiobooks.[15] He provided voice acting for Croatian-language versions of animated features, including adult Thumper in Bambi (dubbed 2005), Colin the Hyrax in The Wild, the Seahorse Herald in The Little Mermaid and Nigel in Garfield 2 (all dubbed 2006), Rhino in Bolt (2008) and Super Rhino (2009), Armando in Rio (2011) and Forky in Toy Story 4 and Forky Asks a Question (both 2019).[16][17] He voiced the narrator and numerous other characters in the Croatian Vrijeme je za priču series.[18] He also provided the voice for the title character in the 2005 animated feature Raindrop, with other voice roles provided by Sven Medvešek, Rakan Rushaidat, Miki Manojlović and Darko Milas.[19]