Judit Elek
Filmmaker and screenwriter Judit ELEK (1937, Budapest) graduated in 1961 from the Academy of Drama and Film in Budapest (now the University of Theatre and Film Arts Budapest), and joined Mafilm as an assistant director. She is one of the founders of the Béla Balázs Studio for young filmmakers. Between 1962 and 2011, she made multiple short films, documentaries and features. The renowned film Maria’s Day (1984) screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. She was also one of the participants in the IFFR jubilee project 25 Encounters. Elek’s films are the subject of a focus programme at IFFR 2023, featuring titles such as Encounter (1963), Inhabitants of Castles in Hungary in 1966 (1966) and On the Field of God in 1972-73 (1973).
Filmography
Találkozás/Encounter (1963), Kastélyok lakói/Inhabitants of Castles in Hungary in 1966 (1966), Meddig él az ember?/How Long Does Man Live? (1968), Sziget a szárazföldön/The Lady from Constantinople (1969), Találkozunk 1972-ben (Sötétben-világosban)/We Will Meet in 1972 – In Dark and in Light (1972), Istenmezején 1972-73-ban/On the Field of God in 1972-73 (1973), Az első fénykép/Tamás Cseh: The First Photo (1974), Egyszerű történet/A Commonplace Story (1975), Majd holnap/Maybe Tomorrow (1979), Vizsgálat Martinovics Ignác szászvári apát és társainak ügyében/The Trial of Martinovics and the Hungarian Jacobins (1981), Mária-nap/Maria’s Day (1984), Tutajosok/Memories of a River (1989), Ébredés/Awakening (1995), Mondani a mondhatatlant – Elie Wiesel üzenete/To Speak the Unspeakable – The Message of Elie Wiesel (1996), Egy szabad ember – Fisch Ernő élete/A Free Man – The Life of Ernő Fisch (1998), A hét nyolcadik napja/The Eighth Day of the Week (2006), És a halottak újra énekelnek/After All the Dead Sing Again… (2018), Visszatérés – Retrace (digital director’s cut) (2019)
Judit Elek at IFFR
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We Will Meet in 1972 – In Dark and in Light
A smart, sharp television documentary about the reality of the work of miners.
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Visszatérés – Retrace (digital director’s cut)
A Jewish-Hungarian immigrant returns to the world she left behind in this mosaic of reckoning and remembrance.
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The Trial of Martinovics and the Hungarian Jacobins
Dramatisation of the 1794-95 trial against priest and agitator Ignác Martinovics. A visually austere allegory about Hungarian history.
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Tamás Cseh: The First Photo
A television documentary about legendary singer/composer/actor Tamás Cseh.
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To Speak the Unspeakable – The Message of Elie Wiesel
A key Holocaust recall and documentary journey with writer/activist/academic Elie Wiesel.
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On the Field of God in 1972-73
Part one of Judit Elek’s documentary about Istenmezején, where young women are reduced to a life of chores.
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Memories of a River
A disturbingly sober presentation of the last trial in the Austro-Hungarian dual monarchy rooted in antisemitism.
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Maybe Tomorrow
A couple in love, but married to other partners. Harsh words, grainy views and tired promises.
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Maria’s Day
A day in the death of one of Hungary’s most illustrious families, incomparable in its raw neediness.
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The Lady from Constantinople
Scenes from the life of a lonely elderly lady in utterly bizarre situations. A masterpiece hopscotching between surrealism and cinema vérit&eac