Mati Unt

Mati Unt (January 1, 1944, Linnamäe, Voore Parish (now Voore, Mustvee Parish), Jõgeva County, Estonia – August 22, 2005, Tallinn) was an Estonian writer, essayist, and theatre director. His first novel, *Hüvasti, kollane kass* (Goodbye, Yellow Cat), was written at the age of 18 after he finished high school. He continued his education in literature, journalism, and philology at the University of Tartu. From 1966 to 1972, he served as Director of the Vanemuine Theater, then held the same position at the Youth Theater until 1991, and at the Estonian Drama Theatre until 2003, after which he became a freelance writer.

Unt was married to television journalist and screenwriter Ela Tomson from 1965 until their divorce in 1973. He joined the Estonian Writers' Union in 1966. In 1980, he was named an Honored Writer of the Estonian SSR and became one of the signatories to the Letter of 40 intellectuals in the same year. In 2000, he was awarded the Order of the White Star.

In 2005, shortly before his death, he became a Professor of liberal arts at the University of Tartu. He is buried in the Metsakalmistu cemetery in Tallinn.

Four successive novels—*Võlg* (The Debt, 1964), *Elu võimalikkusest kosmoses* (On the Possibility of Life in Space, 1967), *Kuu nagu kustuv päike* (The Moon Like the Outgoing Sun, 1971), and *Must mootorrattur* (The Black Motorcyclist, 1976)—established his reputation as a major writer. He was also instrumental in bringing avant-garde theatre to post-Soviet Estonia.

Several of his novels have been adapted for film since his death, including *Sügisball* ("Autumn Ball") in 2007 by Veiko Õunpuu.