Hungarian directors

He was born in 1917 and between the two World War he finished his primary and secondary school. After them he graduated in the College of Fine Arts, which helped him later to be a production-designer. He liked to learn and joined the Academy of Theatre and Film Arts. He bacame a director and actor. In the beginning of his career he was a production-designer, actor and he directed in theatres. He liked illustration and made many book illustrations. After the 2nd WW he was the main director of the Magyar Theatre, and in 1947 he was the member of the National Theatre. In 1950 he got a job in the Film Factory as an art director. Occasionally he wrote scripts. His first film Vihar (1952) is filmed in a Hungarian village. At the height of his career he made the internationally renowned film Merry-Go-Round (1956). He died in heart-attack when he was 77.

Miklos Jancsó was born in 1921 in Vac, Hungary. His mother Angela Poparada was Romanian and his father Sandor Jancsó Hungarian. Jancsó received a degree in Law from the University of Cluj-Napoca in 1944. After fighting in WWII and a brief period as a POW, he chose to join the Film and Theater Academy in Budapest, and graduated with a diploma in Film Directing in 1950. His fifth feature film The Round-Up (1966) was a huge hit domestically and internationally and is often considered a significant work of world cinema. Hungarian film critic Zoltan Fabri called it "perhaps the best Hungarian film ever made." Film critic Derek Malcolm included the film in his list of the 100 greatest films ever made. In Hungary, it was seen by over a million people (in a country with a population of 10 million). His next film The Red and the White (1967) became Jancsó's biggest success internationally. It won for example the 'Best Foreign Film' award from the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics. In his following films he developed a personal style of historical analysis using complex camera movements, dance and popular songs, creating his own cinematic style he called "political musical". The long takes became a trademark of Jancsó, so for example the 80-minute long Winter Wind (1969) consists of only 12 shots. Jancsó received the 'Best Director' award at the Cannes Film Festival 1972 for the film Red Psalm (1972). During the 1970s, Jancsó divided his time between Italy and Hungary and made a number of films in Italy, the best known of which is Private Vices, Public Virtues (1976). At that time, his films Hungarian Rhapsody (1979) and Allegro barbaro (1979) were the most expensive to have been produced in Hungary, but the critical reaction was muted. Jancsó was awarded the Career Golden Lion at the Venice Film festival in 1990. After little success and a long break Jancsó returned with The Lord's Lantern in Budapest (1998), which proved to a be a surprising comeback for the director. This success led to a succession of 5 more Pepe (Zoltán Mucsi) and Kapa (Péter Scherer) films, the last in 2006. Jancsó also cemented his reputation by making appearances in a number of films, for example as himself in his Pepe and Kapa films and in guest roles in works by up-and-coming Hungarian directors. Jancsó died of lung cancer on 31 January 2014, aged 92. Fellow Hungarian director Béla Tarr called Jancsó "the greatest Hungarian film director of all time" and acknowledged Jancsó's influence on his own work.

István Szabó was the first director to bring home to Hungary the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. The movie receiving the award was his 1981 film Mephisto. In January 2006, it became public that he had been an agent of the III/III department, a former communist agency of interior intelligence. After the revolution in 1956, he was blackmailed and forced to cooperate, though later he was considered willingly cooperative. Allegedly, he wrote reports about fellow Hungarian directors, actors, and actresses such as Miklós Jancsó, Mari Töröcsik, Károly Mécs. Szabó has never denied the charges and considers his agent work heroic and needful, claiming he saved the life of a friend sentenced to death for his involvement in the revolution of 1956.

István Szöts was born on 30 June 1912 in Szentgyörgyválya, Austria-Hungary [now Valea Sangeorgiului, Romania]. He was a director and writer, known for Emberek a havason (1942), Ének a búzamezökröl (1947) and Melyiket a kilenc közül? (1956). He died on 5 November 1998 in Vienna, Austria.

Steve Sekely was born on 25 February 1899 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. He was a director and writer, known for Boy, the Noszty (1938), Die große Sehnsucht (1930) and Hollow Triumph (1948). He was married to Klára Makoldy and Irén Ágay. He died on 9 March 1979 in Palm Springs, California, USA.

István Gaál was born on 25 August 1933 in Salgótarján, Hungary. He was a director and writer, known for The Falcons (1970), Sodrásban (1964) and Legato (1978). He died on 25 September 2007 in Budapest, Hungary.

Director. He read law in Budapest, then in 1913 he completed the course on acting of the National Association for Acting. In 1914 he published a volume of poetry entitled Kóborlások. In 1918 he founded the Madách Theatre, which he became the director of. Between 1920-27 he is the director of Star. At the end of the silent film era he returned to the stage and became the leading director of Belvárosi Színház (Theatre of the Inner City). After the sound picture was introduced his interest turned towards the cinema again. He was the Director of the film school of the National Association for Films and he himself lectured. His true genre is comedy. He called attention to himself back in the twenties with a burlesque made based on the script of Lajos Zilahy, Rongyosok. There are two memorable movie hits associated with his name: Meseautó (1934) and the Budai Cukrászda a (1935).Béla Gaál's extremely successful film, Meseautó (Car of Dreams, 1934) was the first example of Hungarian glamour comedy. The story of the big boss falling in love with his secretary became a model for Hungarian comedies, and was even successful abroad - an English language remake was shot entitled Car of My Dreams.

Loved drawing and painting at primary school, and decided to be an artist. He graduated as a drawing teacher. Worked as a journalist in the beginning, much of the time in foreign countries. In Paris he worked as an assistant director, when he knew R. Clair. In Hungary he founded a film factory in 1938. First he was a production manager, and learnt directing.

He showed his knowledge in 1940, when _Gyurkovics fiúk (1940)_ was his first film. In 1945 he was employed as a co-manager in the Mafirt film factory. He began to produce news reels for the cinema. At the end of the 40s he moved to Italy where he lived for about 15 years and painted a lot. After 1956 he moved to Brasil, and finally returned home to Hungary where he died.

Zoltán Várkonyi was born on 13 May 1912 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. He was an actor and director, known for Simon Menyhért születése (1954), Sóbálvány (1958) and Fekete gyémántok (1977). He was married to Vera Szemere and Dóra Fáy Kiss. He died on 10 April 1979 in Budapest, Hungary.

János Herskó was born on 9 April 1926 in Budapest, Hungary. He was an actor and director, known for Két emelet boldogság (1960), Vasvirág (1958) and Szevasz, Vera (1967). He was married to Anna Herskó. He died on 12 October 2011 in Budapest, Hungary.

Szabolcs Hajdu was born on 26 January 1972 in Debrecen, Hungary. He is an actor and director, known for Bibliothèque Pascal (2010), Fehér tenyér (2006) and It's Not the Time of My Life (2016).

Béla Tarr was born on 21 July 1955 in Pécs, Hungary. He is a producer and director, known for Werckmeister Harmonies (2000), The Turin Horse (2011) and Satantango (1994). He is married to Ágnes Hranitzky.

Márta Mészáros was born on 19 September 1931 in Budapest, Hungary. She is a director and writer, known for Adoption (1975), Diary for My Children (1984) and Diary for My Lovers (1987). She was previously married to Miklós Jancsó, Laszlo Karda and Jan Nowicki.

Ildikó Enyedi was born on 15 November 1955 in Budapest, Hungary. She is a director and writer, known for On Body and Soul (2017), Simon, the Magician (1999) and My Twentieth Century (1989).

Attila Janisch was born on 31 March 1957 in Kecskemét, Hungary. He is a director and writer, known for Long Twilight (1997), Másnap (2004) and Zizi (1982).

Zoltán Huszárik was born on 14 May 1931 in Domony, Hungary. He was a director and writer, known for Sinbad (1971), Elégia (1966) and Tisztelet az öregasszonyoknak (1971). He was married to Ildikó Móger, Anna Nagy and Melczer, Annamária. He died on 15 October 1981 in Budapest, Hungary.

Judit Ember was born on 16 May 1935 in Abádszalók, Hungary. She was a director and writer, known for Fagyöngyök (1978), És ne vígy minket kísértésbe (1994) and Snagovi gyerekek (1995). She died on 15 November 2007 in Budapest, Hungary.

Gyula Macskássy was born on 4 February 1912 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. He was a director and writer, known for Párbaj (1961), 1, 2, 3... (1962) and Öreg és fiatal (1969). He died on 29 October 1971 in Budapest, Hungary.

Pál Gábor was born on 2 November 1932 in Budapest, Hungary. He was a director and writer, known for Angi Vera (1978), Utazás Jakabbal (1972) and The Long Ride (1983). He was married to Éva Szabó. He died on 21 October 1987 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.

Pál Sándor is a renowned director and producer of both the Hungarian and international film industry. After graduating the Theatre and Film Academy as a film director, he worked from the mid-nineteen sixties in Studio 3 of Mafilm and close to twenty years in Hunnia Filmstudio where he was deputy director between 1985 and 1989, and managing director from 2003 to 2011. Pál Sándor was a long-time teacher of the Theatre and Film Academy. For over ten years he was the owner and Managing Director of Novofilm, a Hungarian-German film production company. In 2000 he founded his own film production firm, Filmstreet. Pál Sándor holds the most prestigious Hungarian film awards: the Prima Primissima Prize, the Kossuth Prize, the Béla Balázs Prize and the Outstanding and Excellent Artist Award, along with 24 international accolades like the Silver Bear from Berlin, the Fipresci Prize from Cannes, the Silver Hugo from Chicago, and the Critics' Prize from Karlovy Vary, just to name a few.

Gábor Bódy was born on 30 August 1946 in Budapest, Hungary. He was a director and writer, known for Amerikai anzix (1975), Narcissus and Psyche (1980) and Kutya éji dala (1983). He was married to Veronika Baksa-Soos (Veruschka Body). He died on 25 October 1985 in Budapest, Hungary.

Éva Zsurzs was born on 29 August 1925 in Budapest, Hungary. She was a director and writer, known for A koppányi aga testamentuma (1967), Barbárok (1966) and Különös házasság (1984). She died on 6 September 1997 in Budapest, Hungary.

Miklós Erdély was born on 4 July 1928 in Budapest, Hungary. He was a director and actor, known for Verzió (1979), Vernal Execution (1985) and Álommásolatok (1977). He died on 22 May 1986 in Budapest, Hungary.

Pál Schiffer was born in 1939 in Hajdúszovát, Hungary. He was a director and writer, known for Cséplö Gyuri (1978), A pártfogolt (1983) and Elektra, avagy bevezetés a kapitalizmus politikai gazdaságtanába (2003). He died on 3 October 2001.

Gyula Gazdag was born on 19 July 1947 in Budapest, Hungary. He is a director and writer, known for Elveszett illúziók (1983), A Hungarian Fairy Tale (1987) and Eagle vs Shark (2007).