Happy New Life
(Boldog új élet)

feature, 35mm, 81 minutes, 1:1.85

First feature

PREMIER (HUNGARY): 2007.

The story takes place in a modern-day anonymous city, with nameless characters. The time of day is uncertain. It is set in a suburban milieu in empty, abandoned areas and tunnels in remote parts of the city. The outskirts are austere. The protagonist lives here alone, in a housing development apartment building. He is Roma, grew up in a foster-home, and never knew his parents. Neither does he know anything about normalcy or the ways of the World. His aspirations vacillate between dormant aims and illusions. He has very few friends who would be able to understand anything about his idle existence. A deep desire to belong to someone burns within him, and is slowly taking shape, but this causes him problems.
The person who looks after him offers him an unusual gift one day. He is given the dossier that includes his childhood files. These documents may give him hope to reconstrue that which was left unfinished in his childhood.

38th Hungarian Film Week
2007: Special Prize and Best Music Prize of the Student Jury

Pécs, Moveast
2007: Honorary Mention for Excellent Visual

Hungarian Film Critics' Prizes
2007: Best First Film

Creators

Árpád Bogdán Director
Árpád Bogdán Screenplay
Márk Győri, Gábor Szabó Director of photography
Márk Győri Editor
Membrán Music
Lajos Csernóczky Sound
Márton Ágh Visual design
Andrea Flesch Costumes
Gábor Rajna, Gábor Sipos Producer
Laokoon Film Production company
Lajos Orsós, Michaela Gőczi, Zsolt Kovács, István Szilvási, Roland Tzafetás, Ágnes Daróczi, Lívia Kursinszki, Richárd Orgon Cast

Awards

Budapest Hungarian Film Week - 2007 Simó Sándor Prize for the Best First Film
Berlinale - Berlin International Film Festival - 2007 Special Mention Panorama
Geneva Festival Tous Ecrans - 2007 Árpád Bogdán - Reflet d'Or - Best Director Prize
Budapest Hungarian Film Week - 2007 Membrán - Best Original Music
Budapest Hungarian Film Week - 2007 Gábor Sipos - Best Producer

Festivals

Brussels EuroCine 27 - 2010
Seville Film Festival - 2007
Rio de Janeiro IFF - 2007
Seoul International Film Festival - 2008 (in competition)
Galway Film Fleadh - 2007 (in competition)
Calcutta International Film Festival - 2007
Ghent Flanders International Film Festival - 2007
Palic International Film Festival - 2007
Toronto International Film Festival - 2007
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival - 2007 (in competition)
Bratislava International Film Festival - 2007 (in competition)
Ourense International Independent Film Festival - 2008
Reykjavik International Film Festival - 2007 (in competition)
Zlín International Film Festival for Children and Youth - 2008 (in competition)
Warsaw International Film Festival - 2007
Marrakech International Film Festival - 2007
Newport Beach Film Festival - 2008
Aubagne International Film Festival - 2008 (in competition)
Lecce European Cinema Festival - 2007 (in competition)

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