By Anita Falusi
In my quest, to collect more information about the situation of Hungarian Cinema today, I came across a talented independent filmmaker, Madarász István. He was brought to my attention because even though he never went to film school his movies win award after award from the U.S. throughout Hungary to Spain. Recently, he even got a grant for pitching a new project to a 15 producer panel at the Central European Pitch Forum. I decided to ask him; what is the secret to be a successful independent filmmaker in Hungary today?! His unique insight to the country’s changing film industry gives a new perspective that is sometimes hard to hear but certainly very true. He belongs to a new generation of filmmakers who are eager and ready to take on the film world only with their talent and hard work…
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Hungary has gone through major political changes… How did this shape the Hungarian Film? Is there a new style formulating?
I don’t see any strong direction yet. The Hungarian film is now a bit indefinable, a blend of different trends. Compared to previous times, I don’t see a unified character or language right now… maybe depressive and dragging, these are the first words come to mind. It is also selfish…l’art pour l’art. It is not made for the audiences, it doesn’t want to give them anything, it is just murmuring to himself. On the other side, a growing number of filmmakers trying to make blockbusters but they are just searching for the formula to reach a big, mediocre, mainstream audience. The sad reality is that they always end up aiming much lower than that. So, we end up with idiotic, dumb and just generally bad, bad movies. The truth lies somewhere between the two…but I’ll show them.
A lot of young people leave the country in search for money, success and acknowledgement…
It is a sort of disillusionment, disappointment…if somebody seriously wants to make movies, sooner or later they will leave and they are completely right. I will also go, I am just waiting until I get the call.
Did the 20% film budget reimbursement and the new film studios help the situation?
This, strangely, was a good idea and seems to make a lot of sense. The effect was immediate, several new foreign productions arrived that created new jobs, we could go to work, become extras and look around. And the Hungarians realized that filmmaking can be done differently, better really…
What do you think about Co-productions?
There are more and more but I am not satisfied yet. Even though, it helps to create more Hungarian movies, still movie making is not our strongest export product. I believe that it could be in fact… We have to make movies that drive the foreign filmmakers crazy, something that interests them, something that they would buy or they want to participate in…it is really not that impossible.
What is the situation of the Hungarian Independent Cinema today? Can it actually be distinguished?
Today every Hungarian film made is a little miracle. The situation is just that bad. Therefore, every film counts as independent. But the true independent filmmakers, like me, have an even harder time to succeed. You have to be brave and above all very persistent. Eventually, there will be an opportunity.
When did you know that you want to be a filmmaker?
In primary school, I wanted to be an astronomer, then actor and eventually film director. By the beginning of high school that is all I could think about. I could not imagine doing any other position in film, since the director is the boss… Later I became interested in special effects, so I was playing with the thought but only as a hobby, next to being a director.
What were your first steps?
We started making movies with a good friend of mine just in our heads, since neither of us had a film or video camera. We were reading horror stories and wrote script-like scenarios, thinking that one day… Then there was a new grant for high school students: amateur filmmakers with the 50 best ideas got to make their film. They provided cameras for 3 days shoot and editing facilities. Both, me and my friend applied and we both got in. We made a horror story and a western subsequently they excluded both of us because the films were too long. Then the next year, in the same competition, I got the best director award. I even received a big TV!
Did you think of going to film school?
Of course, I thought of it, even today sometimes...most likely for the rest of my life I will have inferiority complex because I did not learn filmmaking in school. But in Hungary there was only the Academy of Drama and Film where at the time really strange movies surfaced. It just didn’t attract me. I even went every year to watch their diploma films but I never found them. Those things they made weren’t films in my book.
How did the situation change? Are there any new film schools?
Yes, there are many different schools now, for one the Academy of Drama and Film is much better now, and there are also several private schools. Even many foreign film schools started to build their new branches here. They are all very expensive but at least they have good name in the industry as well. Only time will tell if they are also beneficial in the long run. However, the communities and networking opportunities they create are essential. It is impossible to succeed in this business as an outsider.
Many young filmmakers start their careers in film schools?
Everybody starts out differently. There are many of them who go to the Academy but there are others, like me, who simply just start making films…better and better ones, as time passes and soon enough somebody in the industry will notice it.
Do you find film festivals beneficial for this?
Very much so.
Let’s break them down: student film festivals?
This is probably the most beneficial out of the different festival forms because new, raw and yet unknown talents have the opportunity to surface. Today in Hungary filmmakers with the smallest talent will be noticed. A lot of people make movies; because of the advances in technology “movie making” is not so complicated. But technology does not make a movie necessarily good. Most people get stuck at the level of a funny YouTube video (of course we have to be grateful for even those to exist). It is still rare that somebody can rise above that and actually tell a story.
The Hungarian Film Festival?
This is the big shots game, in Hungary it is a type of parade, we show each other what we could put together last year. A big snob gathering.
Foreign festivals?
To move forward in one’s career it is essential today to gain foreign recognition. In general, foreign festivals are more objective, not colleagues or friends are giving the awards… To show your film abroad and be acknowledged can boost one’s film career enormously. Plus the new connections that you can build bring new opportunities… Most importantly, the discovery of new, different and greater dimensions is extremely valuable. It is beneficial to notice (and marvel) that not everybody muddles so much, like us, Hungarians. Interestingly enough, it is often not a matter of money, rather the way of thinking, perspective and freedom…
In an interview, you mentioned that the technical quality of films nominated to festivals have improved greatly. Did technology have an impact on the stories as well?
No, unfortunately, it did not change them at all. Today everybody can have a good video camera and they can edit their films as well on their home computer. They can even put special effects on them with the click of the mouse but, obviously, it will never be a good film from that. For that, independent from technology, one has to think… The only advantage is that if the story of the film is as good as the technical quality, the film can be shown to a larger audience. This way, there would be a chance for unknown independent filmmakers to show their talents.
How do you make a living until your big break?
I am personally distressed and frittered away. But I am still trying: I work as assistant director, edit trailers, videotape events…etc. Exactly like everybody else. We all are trying to make some money while staying close to the film world as much as possible. For me it does not matter right now what is my position on a film shoot, if I can be there, that is only what matters… I shot behind the scenes footage, I worked as runner who brings coffees to the set, and I escorted extras from the studio to the dining tent. But at least I was there, I looked at everything, learned everything and on top of it, I got paid.
By now, you have made two very successful films. How did they come about?
The Moralis Bypass was made for a religious film festival, with the budget of nearly zero (the largest sum in the budget was the “pizza for the crew”) and I shot it in my apartment…which I actually ended up getting into a lot of trouble for… J It won a couple of amateur film festivals. Then it also won on a country wide student film festival where Jancsó Miklós was the president of the jury. He was very kind to me and urged me to send in my film to the Hungarian Film Festival where, to my biggest surprise, it was in the special selection. It was such an incredible feeling. Then, of course, nothing happened. But my confidence grew greatly…
El_bb-utóbb (Sooner or Later) was made five years later. It was also made with a very small budget but this time with a real crew, real film and a professional cinematographer…etc. By then, I became good friends with a young director, Dyga Zsombor, who recommended me to his then producer, Durst György. He offered me to pay for a short film if I can get it done in a week with shooting and post production included. And we did it. So, this film got in to the Hungarian Film Festival as well, it won the best short film category from the student jury. Then it went on to several foreign film festivals and, thank God, did really, really well.
What does a young filmmaker do if (s)he has a great script in their hands and now wants to direct it?
(S)he has the most chances if the script is truly good, the budget is low and it is a short. A short film can be done even from private funds… You have to go step by step. A too ambitious script could be very difficult to make for an unknown director. You have to make cheap but genius short films – I think this is the formula for the breakthrough. After the movie is made, there are the endless number of festivals… You have to nominate it anywhere and everywhere and if it is truly good, then it will excel. Then, the great collaborators will come around… This was my path but, unfortunately, it is a very slow process…
And finally, where do you get your ideas for those great scripts?
In the shower and I also walk around a lot.
It is that simple. As we talked about Hungarian Cinema, film schools, film festivals and his rising career, the unavoidable path of most young filmmakers’ became obvious. The formula to break into the Hungarian film world seems to be very similar to the one that I heard before in the United States: make genius short films, win lots of awards and preferably have a feature movie’s script in your drawer ready. Good luck everyone and Happy Holidays! Boldog Új Évet Kívánunk Mindenkinek!
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