Rudolf Urc studied dramaturgy at FAMU in Prague. He worked as a director and head dramaturg at the Newsreel Film Unit and the Short Film Studio in Bratislava, where he directed a number of important documentary films, often focused on historical and social themes, including The Man from Málinec/ Človek z Málinca (1959), Two Democracies / Dve demokracie (1960), Three Memories / Tri spomienky (1964), The Generals / Generáli (1969), Shots in Košúty / Výstrely v Košútoch (1971), and Rebel Pilots / Povstaleckí letci (1974).
During the period of political normalisation, he was barred from documentary filmmaking and moved into animation, which became the central focus of his later work. As a director, dramaturg, and creative force, he made a decisive contribution to the development of Slovak animated film and television animation. He directed animated films such as The Ploughman and the Giants / Oráč a obri (1975), Minutes at the Gatehouse / Minútky na vrátnici (1978), First Class / Prvá trieda (1984), and A City on the Danube / Mesto na Dunaji (1985), as well as several widely known animated television series, including Master Christian / Majster Kristián (1979–1981), Stories from the Blue Caravan / Príbehy z belasej maringotky (1982–1986), Dada and Dodo / Dada a Dodo (1986–1988), and Tales from the Nightgown / Rozprávky z nočnej košieľky (1994). He was the author of the concept and script and co-director of the documentary television series The Magical World of Animated Film / Čarovný svet animovaného filmu (2010), devoted to the history of Slovak animation.
Rudolf Urc was among the founders of the Biennial of Animation Bratislava (1985) and, after 1989, established the Department of Animation at the Film and Television Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava (VŠMU), where he worked for many years as a teacher. He was also active as a film scholar and publicist, publishing numerous books on animated and documentary film and on the history of Slovak animation. Throughout his career, he contributed to hundreds of documentary, newsreel, and animated films and received numerous major awards for his lifetime contribution to Slovak cinema.
In 2020, he was awarded the Pribina Cross, First Class, by Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová. In September 2025, he received the Igric Award for Lifetime Contribution to Slovak Cinema.
