Cartoonist, animator

He was born in 1929 in the town of Slovenska-Pozega (Yugoslavia). Even before graduating from the Zagreb Academy of Arts in 1952, he collaborated with some local magazines, especially closely with the comic and satirical newspaper named Kerempukh. In 1955, he joined Zagrebilm, where he worked as a decorator in cartoon production of such film directors as Dusan Vukotich (Jimmy’s Cowboy, Playful Robot), Boris Kolar (Boy and Ball, Boomerang), Vatroslav Mimika (Happy End “,” Egg “) and others.
In 1961, Burek shot the first cartoon based on his own script, The Blacksmith’s Pupil. After that was the stunning and chilling I Videl Sem Daijine Meglene i Kalne (In the distance I saw smoke and dirt) – a chronicle of the atrocities of the Turks against the Croats in the 16th century. Burek has become one of the most highly praised publicly Zagreb animators; He strengthened his position with a number of outstanding works, including the folklore-based work Songs and Dances (1966), Captain Arbanas Marco (1967), Training (1970). Burek also worked on the animated series Professor Balthazar. In 1966 he made the The King of Circus. In the 1970s he, as a director of cartoons, got less work, although The Cat, which he wrote and filmed in 1971, demonstrated all his skills. In addition, in 1975 he shot one of the sketches in The Man-Pollutant. In 1978 he released his ten-minute cartoon Handle.
Burek is a master of form and color, his cartoons have a clear art-oriented flavor. He is an owner of many awards in Belgrade, Oberhausen, Mamaia and others.

Reference: The World Encyclopedia of Cartoons, 1981