05/10/2006

Post-production has begun on the Hungarian-German co-production Overnight by promising Hungarian director Ferenc Török. The third feature by the 35 year-old filmmakers is the final part in a trilogy after Moscow Square (2001) and Eastern Sugar (2004), which was selected at 22 international festivals, including Locarno.

A project Cineuropa wrote on last year (see article), Overnight brings together Viktor Bodo, Enikö Eszenyi and German actor Hanns Zischler for a behind-the-scenes stock market drama-thriller.

Written by András Maros, the film follows the misadventures of Peter (Bodo), a well-known Budapest broker whose private and professional lives undergo serious questioning. One of his big clients suddenly claims money that Peter had lost, while he receives a positive pregnancy test anonymously. These two events cause for upheaval in the broker’s view of the world.

Undisputedly one of the most eagerly awaited Hungarian releases next season, the film – shot from July 14 through September 23 – is expected to be ready in time for the 38th Hungarian Film Week (January 30-February 4, 2007).

Overnight is being produced by Ivan Angelusz (see interview) for Katapult Film, the Hungarian outfit behind Szabolcs Hajdu’s White Palms, the country’s entry for the 2007 Oscar nominations for Best Foreign Language Film.

With a budget of €1.5m and backing from the Hungarian government, Overnight is being co-produced by Oliver Röpke and Patrick Knippel for the German outfit Filmkollektiv Film und Medienproduktion, who expressed their interest in the project at last year’s Cottbus Co-production market.

Also supported by Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (€300,000), the feature will be released in Germany through JetFilm Verleih and is expected be released in Hungary through Budapest Film.

(Translated from French)