07/10/2005

Yesterday saw the highly anticipated arrival in Hungarian theatres of the latest film by local director Péter Gárdos, The Porcelain Doll (A porcelánbaba). Distributed by Budapest Film, the film, which won the prize for best director and the Moskowitz Prize at the 2005 Hungarian Film Week, hopes to take on America’s current dominance of the Hungarian box-office (despite the second place held by the French film Le Transporteur 2 by Louis Leterrier), and is a serious contender against the four US releases of the week. Interpreted by Lajos Bertók, Judit Németh, Sándor Csányi (best supporting male role at Film Week) and Bálint Péntek, The Porcelain Doll was produced by Tivoli in co-production with Duna Television, the support of the Motion Picture Public Foundation of Hungary, of the Hungarian ministry of Culture and the National Radio and Television Commission.

Very prolific, the filmmaker has almost completed already the post-production of his next film, his 8th feature The Real Santa (see making of), a film with a 1,1 million euros budget, produced once more by Tivoli Filmproduction with the help of the same institutional partners and finance from Concorde Film Trust. The principal roles were taken by György Cserhalmi and Blanka Szilasi, The Real Santa follows the developing relationship between a failed pianist turned part-time Santa Claus and a little girl of 8. A new project which places Peter Gardos among the most visible of the new Hungarian wave since his previous film The Last Blues (2002) has already been honoured at numerous international festivals.