26/03/2013 - The film by Janos Szasz after Agota Kristof and Ádám Császi'sfirst feature A Land of Storms hope to convince the selectors

Re-booted but still limping along slowly, the Hungarian cinema industry has few candidates up for selection in Cannes this year. Kornél Mundruczó is currently filming (article), Bence Fliegauf in pre-production, The Gambler by Szabolcs Hajdu is apparently not yet ready, and Liza, the Fox Fairy [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Karoly Ujj Mészáros
film profile] by Károly Ujj Mészáros (article) is still in post-production without any certainty of being finished in time to compete for a place on the Croisette.

Magyar hopes are therefore mainly pinned on The Notebook [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Janos Szász
film profile] (news) directed by Janos Szasz (photo), an adaptation of the well-known novel with the same title by Agota Kristof (who passed away in July, 2011). The cast includes the young twin brothers Andras and Lazlo Gyemant, Danish actor Ulrich Thomsen, Hungarian actresses Piroska Molnar and Orsi Toth, and Ulrich Mathes of Germany. Produced by Hunnia Filmstudio (Hungary), the film was coproduced by Intuit Pictures (Germany), Amour Fou (Austria) and Dolce Vita Films (France), with backing from the CNC, FFA, MDM, MBB, DFFF, MMKA, WFF and Eurimages. Its international sales will be handled by Beta Cinema.

Hungarian cinema is also setting some of its hopes on A Land of Storms [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Adam Csaszi
film profile] by Ádám Császi. Produced by Viktória Petrányi and Eszter Gyárfás for Proton Cinéma and coproduced with Germany, this first feature film has a cast including Andras Sutö, Sebastian Urzendowsky (Pingpong [+see also:
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interview: Matthias Luthardt
interview: Sebastian Urzendowsky
film profile], Goodbye First Love [+see also:
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interview: Mia Hansen-Love
film profile] ) and Adam Varga. Signed by Ivan Szabo, the screenplay traces the mishaps of Szabolcs, an Hungarian footballer, in love with Bernard, one of his team-mates in Germany. They are, however, fired from the team, and Szabolcs decides to give up football and return home to Hungary. Settling in the vast prairie land of Puszta, he works on an isolated farm that he has inherited and soon meets Áron, a 16 year-old teenager searching for his identity in an ultra-traditional region. Then Bernard arrives from Germany and asks Szabolcs to leave with him, back to the world of football, as a team is waiting for them…

(Translated from French)