Hungarian cinema

The history of Hungarian cinema begins in 1896, when the first screening of films by the Lumiere brothers took place in the cafe of the Royal Hotel in Budapest . In June of that year, Arnold and Zhigmond Siglai opened the first Hungarian cinema. Residents of the elite areas of Budapest disliked the new form of entertainment and the cinema soon closed. However, cinema is becoming more and more common. By 1911, more than 100 movie theaters were operating in the capital.

In 1908, the first Hungarian film company Projectograph was founded by actor Joseph Neumann and businessman Mer Mor Ungerlinder ^[1] . The company created not only feature films , but also documentaries and “street” newsreels : “The Life of Stray Gypsies”, “Drunken Cyclist”, “The Accident in Budapest” ^[1] . The basis of feature films was laid by the company “Gunnia”, which imitated “ Pathe ” and “ Gaumont ” ^[1] . The characteristic style of early Hungarian cinema was the joint performance of theatrical productions and film screenings. Each short film was followed by a scene with live actors, often portraying the same screen characters. This genre has inspired prominent writers of the time, such as Ferenc Molnar and Fridies Carinti .

From 1912 to 1918, several new film companies appeared in Budapest, including: “Uranus”, “Lux”, “Star”, “Proya”, “Pedagogy”. During the First World War, the receipt of French films ceased, and Germany increased production. Thanks to the directors who arrived from Germany and Austria, Martin Garash, Cornelius Hinter, Emil Justitz, Joseph Stein, as well as Eden Uher, the production of films in Hungary increased every year: in the first year of the war, 18 were released, in 1916 - 47, and in 1917 - 75 films ^[1] .

From March to August 1919, during the short existence of the Hungarian Soviet Republic , the film industry of Hungary was the first in the world to be fully nationalized. A number of filmmakers welcomed the change; the government provided protection for Hungarian films from foreign competition.

For 4 months, 31 films were shot, not counting popular science and documentaries ^[1] .

The aftermath of World War I left the Hungarian film industry in ruins. Many famous Hungarian directors, including Michael Curtis and Alexander Korda , left the country.

In the twenties, foreign (mainly American) film companies, due to the crisis in Hungary, began to prevail in almost all cinemas in the country. In addition to them, French and Italian films (which were banned during the war) strengthened the backlog of Hungarian cinema. The fall in national production was avoided largely due to state support.

With the advent of dictator Horthy , the sunset of the movie began. The production of films fell sharply. In 1922, only 4 films were made, and subsequently, from 1925 to 1929, an average of 3 films were released per year. In cinema, total censorship was introduced ^[1] .

In 1925, the Hungarian Film Industry Foundation was established, a law was passed that forced distributors to finance Hungarian cinema. Cinemas were required to display newsreels shot by the Hungarian Film Administration. In 1929, the government of Istvan Betlen introduced a tax on imported films, while at the same time, fees for Hungarian film companies were significantly reduced ^[2] . In response to quotas, American film companies stopped selling films in Hungary, and six months later they were canceled ^[1] .

Gradually, new movie makers began to appear. The first Hungarian feature film was shot in 1931 and was called “Blue Idol” ( Hungarian Kék Bálvány ) ^[2] . Two months after the first screening of Idol, the premiere of the film Hippolytus, the Footman , which became one of Hungary's most successful films, took place.

Since 1935, ultra-right-wing groups have been appearing in Hungary criticizing “Jewish-infected” cinema, accusing him of obscenity and immorality. Many protests led to the disruption of the movie premiere of some paintings. The Hungarian government, which had close ties with Nazi Germany, began to put pressure on Jewish actors. Anti-Semitic laws are being introduced that laid the foundation for the mass layoffs of directors, actors, and cameramans of Jewish nationality.

After the war in 1948, film production in Hungary became nationalized. The School of Theater and Cinema was founded, which revealed to the world many names in the sixties. In the 50s, during relative freedom, new significant directors appeared: Zoltan Fabri (“Mr. Teacher Hannibal”, “Carousel”), Caroli Mack (“Liliomfi”), Felix Mariassi (“Spring in Budapest”) ^[3] .

Hungarian movie miracle

In the 60s a whole galaxy of filmmakers appeared, who were interested in both the history of the country and its impact on modernity. The creators of the “Hungarian miracle” received many awards at festivals. The main ones are cinema-language innovators Miklos Jancio , Istvan Szabo and journalistic style master Andras Kovacs ^{[1] [4]} .

In many ways, Janos Kadar ’s reform policy served as a reorganization of Hungarian cinematography. Independent creative associations emerge at the Mafilm Central Film Studio, later called Budapest, Gunnia, Dialogue and Lens. The younger generation creates the famous experimental studio " Bela Balazh ". Subtle realism distinguishes the work of Zoltan Fabry and Karoy Mack , the novelty - Istvan Gaal . However, against the background of world cinema, their films are not particularly noticeable. The masterpiece of the “ new wave ” - “ Without Hope ” (1965) Miklos Yancho is gaining about a million spectators in the country. Author's cinema reaches its peak by 1968 , when it quantitatively surpasses entertainment products. Debut young directors Marta Mesaroche , Ferenc Kosh , Sandor Shara ^[4] .

Istvan Szabo won fame with his paintings: “ Time for Dreams ” (1965), “ Father ” (1966) and “ Love Film ” (1970), where he talks about his peer - the sixties Yanchi Olaha, who was played by Andras Balint in all films ^[5] .

In the 70s, the public gradually loses interest in Hungarian auteur films, which, although they do not lose their original documentary and social criticism skills, become more hazy and pretentious over the next 20 years ^[4] .

Post-Socialist Cinema

Since the late 80s, state-owned film enterprises, including film studios, began to pass into private hands. Artists wanted the abolition of censorship, but at the same time maintaining the previous financial custody of the state. The privatization policy led to a significant dissolution of creative groups and the closure of film factories. A democratic “Council of the Hungarian National Film Fund” appeared. Due to the fragmentation of finances, low-budget films began to appear, the number of films increased (over 30 per year), and the last twenty years of Hungarian cinema have a lot of debuts.

In addition to the state, commercial cinema has grown. One of the brightest directors of the “market” movie was Tamash Shash , who turned to genre cinema ( Presso , Presszo 1998). Gabor Herendy's comedy, Something Like America , was a great success (Valami Amerika, 2002). The third major discovery was Christina Goda with the films “ Nothing But Sex ” (Csak szex es mas semmi, 2005), “ Freedom, Love ” (Szabadsag, szerelem, 2006) and “ Chameleon ” (Kameleon, 2008). The film “ Control ” by Nimrod Antal (Kontroll, 2003) reached the international level. After the nationalist government came to power in 2012, the Council of the Film Fund closed, and the state "National Film Fund" was founded in its place ^[6] .

• Hungarian cinematography. Cinema: Encyclopedic Dictionary / Ch. ed. S. I. Yutkevich; Editorial board: Yu. S. Afanasyev, V.E. Baskakov, I.V. Weissfeld, et al. - M.: Sov. Encyclopedia, 1987 .-- 640 p., 96 p. silt
• Cinema Public Foundation (Hungarian)
• Hungarian Film Archive (Hungarian)
• Movie History (Hungarian)
• Hungarian Movies at Internet Movie Database
• Spotlight on hungarian cinema

• Cunningham, John. Hungarian Cinema: From Coffee House to Multiplex . Wallflower Press, 2004.
• Gábor Szilágyi. Életjel: a magyar filmművészet megszületése 1954-1956 . Budapest: Magyar Filmintézet, 1994. ISBN 978-9-6371-4718-0
• István Zsugán. Szubjektív magyar filmtörténet: 1964-1994 . Budapest: Osiris-Századvég, 1994. ISBN 978-9-6383-8495-9
• Gábor Szilágyi. Tűzkeresztség: a magyar játékfilm története, 1945-1953 . Budapest: Magyar filmintézet, 1992. OCLC 28409300
• József Veress. A Magyar film története . Budapest: Anno Kiadó, 2006. ISBN 978-9-6337-5454-2
• Istvan Nemeshkurti . The history of Hungarian cinema (1896 - 1966). M. - Art. 1969.