HUNGARIAN CULTURAL CENTRE FILM CLUB

Dracula's Shadow - The Real Story Behind the Romanian Revolution

Thursday, 18 November 2010 19:00

at

the Hungarian Cultural Centre

10 Maiden Lane

London WC2E 7NA

Underground: Covent Garden

For reservations please call 020 72406162 or e-mail bookings@hungary.org.uk

The film

Dracula's Shadow - The Real Story Behind the Romanian Revolution is a documentary film that reveals the secret mission from Canada (two French-Canadians - Michael Clair, a former Cabinet Minister in the Parti Quebecois, and Rejean Roy, a reporter for Radio-Canada, worked together) in March 1989 to tape a clandestine TV interview with Romania's biggest dissident, Laszlo Tokes, that would later spark the Romanian Revolution

The Director/Producer

Árpád Szöczi

(with Co-Producer Ádám Neményi (left) after the awards ceremony at the Hungarian Film Week, Feb. 8, 2010)

Canadian-born producer/director Árpád Szöczi actually took part in that clandestine mission. He uses his exclusive access to people, files and inside information to reveal shocking details.

.

Laszlo Tokes

Laszlo Tokes (born 1952) is a Romanian politician, member of the European Parliament, a former honourary president of the Democratic Union of Hungarians of Romania, founding member and president of the Hungarian National Council of Transylvania.

He helped trigger the Romanian Revolution in 1989, which overthrew Nicolae Ceausescu and spelled the end of the communist era in Romania.

In June 20029, in Washington D.C., he was awarded the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom for his role in the struggles against Romanian Communism.

In May 2010, he becam one of the 14 vice-presidents of the European Parliament.

HUNGARIAN CULTURAL CENTRE FILMCLUB

Thursday, 7 October 2010 19:00

at

the Hungarian Cultural Centre

10 Maiden Lane

London WC2E 7NA

Underground: Covent Garden

For reservations please call 020 72406162 or e-mail bookings@hungary.org.uk

I AM NOT YOUR FRIEND (2009)

(Nem vagyok a barátod)

Director:

György Pálfi

The Hungarian and international award winning director's well known for his never ending experimenting in his films and showing the world on a different way what you've never seen before.

The summary of his film in his own words as written on imdb.com:

"I am not your friend is a film of improvisations - not only from the part of the nine amateur actors, but from the D.O.P., the director and the scriptwriters as well.

The story unfolds itself instantly by the reactions and ideas of actors during the 20 days of shooting and developed into what is presented to the audience. But the story perhaps is less important than the world which opens up in front of us, a taste of Budapest in January 2008."

CAST AND CREW

Writers: Gyorgy Palfi and Zsofia Ruttkay.

Producers: Peter Miskolczi and Gabor Varadi.

Actors: Csaba Czene, Kata Farkas, Kamilla Fatyol, Csaba Gosztonyi

(find more information on imdb.com)

STILLS FROM THE MOVIE

For more information about the director and his films please visit:

Interview

http://www.hungarianfilmweek.com/film-2008/film-2008/Interview-with-Gyorgy-Palfi.html

Hukkle (2002)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0289229/

Taxidermia (2006)

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1775763993/

HUNGARIAN CULTURAL CENTRE FILMCLUB

Thursday, 16 September 2010 19:00

A great chance to meet the director in person

at

the Hungarian Cultural Centre

10 Maiden Lane

London WC2E 7NA

Underground: Covent Garden

For reservations please call 020 72406162 or e-mail bookings@hungary.org.uk

THE EARTH'S LOVER / A FÖLD SZERETŐJE

Director: Zsolt Pozsgai

Zsolt Pozsgai is a Europa Prize winning playwright, theatre and film director.

He was born in 1960, Pecs, Hungary.

The urge to become a writer started in his early teenage years, and at the

age of 14 he was already directing.

While he studied Hungarian Literature at Pecs University he gained experience in various fields by taking on different positions, such as a driver, teaching assistant and postman.

When he was 24 he worked as an assistant director at Pecs National Theatre, then as its director. Later on he worked for a book publisher, but was required to do his national service as an air traffic controller for fighter aircraft.

In that time he wrote his first play, Horatio, performed in 1988, and since then his dramatic works have been regularly shown in Hungarian theatres.

By the end of 2005 there were more than 40 pieces which have appeared on stage in 54 theatres. A number a works have been performed abroad as well, in the USA, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France, Bulgaria and Macedonia.

Besides earning a title as a successful theatre director he also wrote and directed several television series.

One of his feature films, THE EARTH'S LOVER is about the maker of world-famous porcelain of Pecs, the inventor of eosin, Vilmos Zsolnay. It's a story from Hungary which takes place at the end of the 19th century.

(Source and more information: www.pozsgai.com)

Check the Gate 3 - trailer

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

EAST-WEST PASSAGE (2010)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

East West Passage / Kelet-nyugati atjaro (2010)

Director: Zsigmond Gabor Papp


Interview with the Director,
related to the 41. Hungarian Film Week and his documentary,
East West Passage

The Director's thoughts on his film:

"I think, the story of releasing the refugees from the DDR in 1989 is one of its kind and something great what Hungary should be proud of. We showed an example to Europe about democratic thinking.
As a 22 years old university student in that time, even though I wasn't part of the movement, but still it was one of the most important moments of my life. I was proud of being Hungarian.
The reason I made this film is because most the Hungarians have already forgotten our country's great achievements in history, and personally I wanted to experience its uplifting atmosphere one more time."

Filmhu: How did you choose your staff?

Director: We know each other very well, one phone call was enough: "Kati / Zoli / Csongor, we're shooting!"

Filmhu: What was your best experience throughout the shootings?

Director: The hospitality of one the german families. On that day we already had two interviews in two different parts of Germany, drove 1000 km, and when we arrived at 10 pm, two beautiful guest rooms and a fantastic dinner was waiting for us. We truly had a feeling that those people wanted to give something back in return what they've got from Hungary 20 years ago.

Filmhu: What was your worst experience then?

Director: The exact opposite of what I've just said before: the ignorance of one of the german families. It was our last day, and we were pretty tired. The shooting with them took half a day, we really did our best to create a very sympathetic picture about them, and they didn't even bother to offer one glass of water.

Filmhu: Are there any scenes that were recorded more times than the others?

Director: It's a classic documentary, every single scene was recorded only once.

Filmhu: In which A category film competition would you like to see your film?

Director: Somewhere in the east part of Germany of course, in Leipzig maybe.

Filmhu: Howmany viewer would make you happy?

Director: In the TV maybe 500 thousand.

/Source: www.filmhu.hu, http://magyar.film.hu/filmhu/magazin/papp-gabor-zsigmond-mi-mutattunk-peldat-europanak.html/



In Zsigmond Gabor Papp's documentary East West Passage we see the story from two points of view.
From one side there are Germans hoping to escape. Beside each individual's life we learn about the whole East-German community.
On the other side decision-maker politicians talk about the Government and its diplomatic steps' real reasons behind the movement.

The documentary is a real history lesson with archive documentary material and without claptrap!

/Source and more information (in Hungarian): www.filmtett.ro/

GYPSY DREAMS (2009)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

Gypsy Dreams (2009)

Director and Producer: Eszter Nordin

Eszter Nordin is a Hungarian director-producer.
She holds a Fine Arts degree, graduated at Pitzer College, California.
Her professional career has begun at BBC Television.
She worked in studio management, drama and documentaries departments.
As a freelance she directed drama and documentaries series in England.

In 1991, when she returned tu Hungary, she continued making documentaries, wrote screenplays, was directing in a theatre, was a supervising director of a succesful tv series, was teaching at the Hungarian Film Academy.

With her Media Mania Films production company she gained international recognition with her film TABU, which received several awards, among others the Special Mention at FIPA in 2003 in creative documentaries.

In her film "Gypsy Dreams" we get know a hungarian gypsy family whose life affected by unemployment and racial discrimination, and they have to come to a conclusion that they no longer have a future there.


Then they migrate to England. They arrive in Bolton where there's already a Hungarian Gypsy population.
They called the Lazi Family.
The documentary follows their struggle, from the promising start to the tough times when in 2009, the recession began in England and the factories closed their doors to foreign workers.
But the Lazis still have hope, and expecting their fourth child....

HUNKY BLUES: THE AMERICAN DREAM (2009)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

Hunky Blues: The American Dream (2009)

Director: Peter Forgacs

Peter Forgacs is a Hungarian media artist and independent film maker. Since 1978 he made more than 30 films, but he is best known for his "Private Hungary" series of award winning films often based on ordinary lives from 1920s and 80s.

Throughout his career he received several international awards. Among others: 2007 Dutch Erasmus Prize for his notable contributions to European Culture 2000 Grand Prize for The Maelstrom, "Out of the Darkness" International Film Festival, London 2000 The Golden Spire, Golden Gate award, for Angelos' Film, San Francisco International Film Festival 1997 Berlin, Prix Europa for Free Fall film His international debute came with The Bartos Family (1988).

Since 1990s his video installations have been presented at museums and art galleries throughout Europe and America. Between 2000-2002 he was artist in residence in The Getty Museum/Getty Research Institue, Los Angeles where he created The Danube Exodus: Rippling Currents of The River Installation.

His works can be found in several museums and public collections. In 2009 he represented Hungary in the Venice Biennale, exhibiting the Col Tempo- The W. Project installation.

/Source: www.forgacspeter.hu, www.hunkyblues.com/

He created Hunky Blues in 2009.

Producer: Gabor Kovacs
Editor: Peter Sass

Musicians:
Karoly Cserepes - keyboard, percussion;
Bela Agoston - saxophone;
Kalman Balog - cimbalom;
Kalman Bango - glass-cimbalom;
Zoltan Farkas - guitar;
Adam Javorka - viola;
Dodi Karpati - trumpet

"The film is a documentary, exploring the fate of thousands of Hungarians who arrived to the United States between 1890 and 1921,reveals the difficult moments of arrival, integration and assimilation, which eventually fed the happiness of the later generations and their fulfillment of the American Dream."

Forgacs tells the story with found footages, photographs and interviews.

MATTIE, THE GOOSE-BOY (1977)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

Mattie, the Goose-boy / Ludas Matyi (1977)



Director: Attila Dargay

Attila Dargay was one of Hungary's very well known and well loved animators.
He was born in Mezonyek, Hungary, 1927.

After getting his degree in Fine Arts, he had a job as a decorator, was a trainee in animation, worked as a cartoonist and designer, and he became a director in 1957.

Through his loveable characters he was able to connect to all age groups.

Whilst Dargay's talent and professional knowledge was reforming Hungarian Animation, his brilliant humour made him one of the most popular creators of the Hungarian Film Industry.

Some of his famous works besdie Mattie, the Goose-boy are Vuk (1981), Szaffi (1985), The tales of Pom-pom (1980).

His last direction was an 11 minutes long cartoon in 1994, and he took part in writing the script of The Seventh Brother in 1996. Then he left and announced his retiring.

He didn't want to adapt the new world of 3D. Although he found it interesting, but still remained the believer of the traditional way.

/Source and reference: www.fszek.hu, Metropolitan Ervin Szabo Library, online catalogue and database/

Mattie, the Goose-boy...

...is a Hungarian epic poem, written by Mihaly Fazekas (1766-1828) in 1804. The poem was an ironic response to the way the lords of Hungary treated the peasants.

Mattie, the Goose-boy counts as a first folk hero in Hungarian literature who overcome his lord's injustice by his intelligence. The tale is a mirror of the Hungarian society.

Mattie, a young boy, trying to sell his geese at the market. All the trouble starts when Lord Daniel Dobroghy claims that the geese belong to him. To punish Mattie he orders 50 lashes to his back. But Mattie makes a vow to get vengeance, that he will repay the punishment three times to the lord.

AMERICAN TORSO (1975)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

American Torso / Amerikai anzix (1975)



Director: Gabor Body

Gabor Body is one of the most outstanding personalities from the Hungarian cinema.

He became a great source of inspiration among filmmakers and film-lovers.

By some he's called radical, and by others the most daring innovator of our time.

Body's film were made in that time when the communism dominated in Hungary and every creative art was under strict control. The regulations said that the cinema should be there for the masses to strengthen the political influence. Experimental films had no chance, film artists were under close surveillance. For that reason for the Body-type-of-filmmakers was difficult to put their ideas onto the big screen.

"He joined the "Studio Bela Balazs" in 1971 (established in 1959, named after the Hungarian scriptwriter) where behind doors experimental films were made despite of the communism outside. It was the meeting place of liberal thinking directors and writers. In 1973 Body set up the "experimental film group K3" as a platform for true experiments."

"From 1971 to 1975 he studied at the Hungarian Film Academy. His diploma work was "American Postcard" (aka American Torso) which after its completion in 1975 won the main award at the Mannheim Film festival in 1976."


American Torso takes us back in 1865. It's about two hungarians meet in the Civil War. The two men represent two different stories. One story is based on Ambrose Bierce's novel "George Thruston", the other is on the Hungarian War of Independence in 1948.
Body's talent create a beautiful of picture of a true friendship of two completely different persons in the middle of changes.

With his films that present fresh and useful discoveries of its time Body's achieved great development in the Hungarian film industry.

/Source and information: www.bodygabor.hu/

DANIEL TAKES A TRAIN (1983)

3rd Hungarian Film Showcase in London

"Somewhere in the World"
22-28 June 2010

Daniel takes the train (1983)

Director: Pal Sandor

Pal Sandor, CEO of Hunnia Film Studio, is a very well known director not only in Hungary, but worldwide as well.

A 24-times award-winning director and producer also holds a the Balazs Bela Prize and an Outstanding Artist title (both are the most prestigious Hungarian film awards). Hunnia Film Studio is the largest film production company, has produced many films since its foundation, 1956.

He holds many film awards. To name a few:

Balazs Bela Prize (Hungarian)
Outstanding Artist Title (Hungarian)
Silver Bear, Berlin (International)
International Critics' Prize, Cannes
Silver Hugo, Chicago (International)
Critics' Prize, Karlovy Vary (International)

Throughout his career he's fulfilled many different roles, such as deputy director between 1985-1989, majority owner and CEO of Novofilm, a Hungarian-German film production company, was a teacher at the Hungarian Academy of Drama and Film.

In 2000 he founded his own film production company, the FilmStreet.


Daniel Takes a Train (or Szerencses Daniel in Hungarian) won several prizes as well after its first appearance on screen in 1982:

1983 - Hungarian Feature Film Festival, First Prize of the Public Jury
Cannes - FIPRESCI Award
1984 - Hungarian Film Critics' Prize for the Best Actor, Gyula Bodrogi
1985 - Zimbabwe: Award for the Festival's Most Inventive Film
1986 - Gdansk: Award for the Best Foreign Film

/Source: http://www.miracle.dk/files/opum-press-kit.pdf/

Daniel Takes a Train was definitely one of those first films that was brave enough to break the silence on 1956 Soviet Invasion in Hungary.

The film takes us through the nation's political, economical change and Daniel's emotional developement.

Like every young man he's in love too with a girl, Mariann. Their emotions towards each other makes them stick to the moment while the world changes around them.



Mariann's disappearance forces Daniel on a long journey to find her love in the land of promise.


Although he's not the only one hoping to get on the train. There are many who crave for a better future and in the fear of Soviet revenge they are ready to leave one country behind to start a life in another one...