Gábor Bódy
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Gabor Body (30 August 1946 - 25 October 1985) was a Hungarian film director.
In the opinion of many Hungarian cinophiles, Gábor Bódy was the most talented filmmaker the country has ever produced. He was a pioneer in numerous ways and many fields.
Studied history and philosophy at Loránd Eötvös University and later at the Academy for Theater and Film Arts. He became an influential member of the Béla Balázs Stúdió (BBS) in the 1970s where he made his films film The Third in 1971. He established various experimental and avant-guard projects at BBS including the Film Language Series in 1973 and the K/3 experimental film group in 1976, reshaping the postwar Hungarian avant-garde film's path.
In 1975 he completes his debut feature at BBS Amerikai Anzix / American Postcard and wins the Grand Prize for best new filmmaker at ""International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg"" and the Hungarian Film Critics prize for best first film. His next feature Narcisz és Psyché was the largest-scale Hungarian production of its era. This epic production based on Sándor Weöres poem Psyché starred Patricia Adriani, Udo Kier and György Cserhalmi and exists in three versions; an original 210min two part version, a 136min version for foreign distribution and a 270min three part television version. Many view this as one of the greatest Hungarian films ever made.
In 1980 he begins work on the first international video magazine INFERMENTAL and manages to publish the first of 10 issues (plus one special issue) while on a residency at DAAD Berliner Küunstlerprogram in 1982. The series published featured a range of guest editors and in total included work from over 1500 artists from 36 countries and was published up to 1991.
After many frustrated projects Body managed to complete a what was to become his final feature film Kutya eji dala/The Dog's Night Song . Body cast himself as the lead in this ambitious and influential feature which incorporated super8 and video as well as a range of Hungarian punk groups of the time in order to a film "deeply rooted in the fundamentals of today's reality." [1]
In 1985 he died under sketchy circumstances. A later published information (2001) hints his earlier collaboration (1973-1983) with the Hungarian Secret Police, the III/III. Authorities of the time (Hungary was then considered a 'satellite' country of the Soviet Union) stated that he had killed himself. His widow instead preferred a charge of murder against certain unidentified parties. No official investigation followed and Gábor Bódy's fate remains a mystery to this day.
Contents |
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Feature Films
- 1975 : Amerikai Anzix / American Postcard
Hungary, 35mm scope, B&W, 104'
- 1980 : Nárcisz és Psyché / Narcissus and Psyche
Hungary, 35mm scope, colour, one part foreign version 136' two part version 270' three part TV version 270'
- 1983 : Kutya éji dala / The Dog's Night Song
Hungary, 35mm, colour, 147'
[edit] TV Films
- 1976 : Filmiskola / Film School
Hungary, 16mm, B&W, 87'
- 1977 : Katonák / Soldiers
Hungary, TV, colour, 90min
- 1978 : Krétakör / Chalk Circle
Hungary, TV, colour, 95min
- 1981-82 : Hamlet (A fegyveres filozófus) / Hamlet (The Armed Philosopher)
Hungary, TV, colour, 173min
[edit] Short Films & Videos
- 1971 A Harmadik / The Third
Hungary, 35mm, B&W, 50'
- 1972 Fogalmazvány a féltékenységrõl / Draft on Jealousy
Hungary, 16mm, B&W, 20'
- 1972 : Ifivezetok / Youth Organisation Leaders
Hungary, 16mm, B&W 42'
- 1973 : Tradicionális Kábítószerünk / Our Traditional Drope
Hungary, 16mm, B&W, 30'
- 1972-75 : Négy bagatell / Four Bagatells
Hungary, 35mm, B&W, 28'
- 1974 : Hogyan verekedett meg Jappe és do Escobar után a világ / After Jappe and Do Escobar fought how did the world come to fight
Hungary, 16mm, B&W, 40'
- 1976 : Pszihokozmoszok / Psychocosmoses
Hungary, 35mm, B&W, 12'
- 1978 : Privát történelem / Private History (co-dir. Péter Timár)
Hungary, 35mm, B&W, 25'
- 1980 : Mozgástanulmányok 1880-1980 (Homage to Eadweard Muybridge) / Motion Studies 1880-1980 (Homage to Eadweard Muybridge)
Hungary, 35mm scope, colour, 18'
- 1982 : Conversation between East and West co-director Marcel Odenbach
Germany, video, coluor, 3'
- 1982 : Die Geschwister/ Brother and Sister
GDR / Hungary, video, colour, 27'
- 1982 : Der Dämon in Berlin / The Demon In Berlin
GDR / Hungary, super8 and video, colour, 28'
- 1983 : Die Geisel / The Hostage
GDR / Hungary, video, colour, 22'
- 1983 : De Occulta Philosophia / Philo-clip
GDR / Hungary, video, colour, 3'
- 1983 : Rittersrustung / Armour
GDR, video, colour, 40'
- 1984 Vagy-vagy a Chinatownban / Either/Or In Chinatown
Canada / GDR, video, colour, 37'
- 1985 : Euronyme tanca (Mytho-clip) / Dancing Eurynome (Mytho-clip)
Hungary, video, colour, 3'
- 1985 : Waltzer (Lyric-clip) / Waltz (Lyric-clip)
GDR, video, colour, 3'
[edit] Miscellaneous crew
- 1969 : Agitátorik/Agitators dir. Dezsó Magyar (35mm, 82')
Screenplay, actor
- 1976 : Aldrin' dir. László Vidovszky (35mm, 14')
Camera
[1] This quote is taken from an interview with Laszlo Bona and Janos Hollos, first published January 17, 1983 and reprinted in 'Gabor Body: 1946-1985" pub. 1987.
