Béla Tarr facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Béla Tarr
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Tarr at the Midnight Sun Film Festival in Sodankylä, Finland (2012).
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| Born | 21 July 1955 Pécs, Hungary
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| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Occupation | Filmmaker |
| Years active | 1971–present |
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Notable work
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Béla Tarr (born 21 July 1955) is a famous filmmaker from Hungary. He is known for making movies that show real life and often have very long scenes. His first film was Family Nest in 1979. At first, he made films about everyday people and their lives, almost like documentaries.
Over time, his movies changed. They became known for their unique style, especially the way the camera moves slowly and smoothly. Many people see his films as showing the difficult parts of life. The characters in his movies often have tough and complicated relationships.
Some of his well-known films include Damnation (1988), which was praised for its camera work. Sátántangó (1994) and Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) continued his style of showing a stark reality. Sátántangó is sometimes called one of the greatest films ever made by experts. His film The Man from London was shown at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival.
Tarr often worked with the writer László Krasznahorkai, the music composer Mihály Víg, and the camera expert Fred Kelemen. His partner, Ágnes Hranitzky, also helped direct his last few films. After making The Turin Horse in 2011, which many critics loved, Béla Tarr said he would stop directing long movies. In 2013, he opened a film school in Sarajevo called film.factory. He also created an art exhibit with new film scenes in 2017.
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Early life and first films
Béla Tarr was born in Pécs, Hungary, but grew up in Budapest. His parents worked in theatre and film. His father designed sets, and his mother worked at a theatre for over 50 years. His brother, György Tarr, is a painter.
When he was ten, Tarr acted in a TV show based on a book by Leo Tolstoy. He didn't act much after that. He first wanted to be a philosopher, but he started making short films with an 8mm camera. These early films were mostly documentaries about workers and poor people in Hungary.
His amateur films caught the attention of the Béla Balázs Studios, which helped young filmmakers. At 22, he made his first feature film, Családi tűzfészek (Family Nest), in just six days with a small budget and real people, not professional actors. This film showed life very realistically, almost like a documentary.
After this, Tarr studied at the Hungarian School of Theatrical and Cinematic Arts. His next films, Szabadgyalog (The Outsider, 1980) and Panelkapcsolat (The Prefab People, 1981), were similar but started using professional actors. In 1982, he made a TV version of Macbeth that was very different. It had only two shots: one short one and one very long one that lasted 67 minutes!
Later works and unique style
After his 1984 film Őszi almanach (Almanac of Fall), Tarr started working with the writer László Krasznahorkai. Their first film together was Kárhozat (Damnation) in 1988. They then spent seven years making the very long film Sátántangó, which is 415 minutes (almost 7 hours) long! It was released in 1994 and received praise from around the world. After a short film in 1995, he released Werckmeister Harmóniák (Werckmeister Harmonies) in 2000, which was also highly praised.
Many scenes in these later films are incredibly long, sometimes lasting six to eleven minutes or even more. The camera often moves smoothly, circling characters or following them through different places. For example, in the beginning of Sátántangó, the camera follows a group of cows around a village. The American writer Susan Sontag was a big fan of Tarr's work, saying he was one of the most important filmmakers of his time.
After Werckmeister Harmonies, he made A Londoni férfi (The Man From London), which premiered at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. His last feature film was A torinói ló (The Turin Horse) in 2011.
His films are now available on DVD and Blu-ray, including a special 4K version of Sátántangó. In 2021, he was an executive producer for the horror-drama film Lamb, directed by one of his former students.
Influence on other filmmakers
Béla Tarr has inspired many other filmmakers. For example, the American director Gus Van Sant has said that Tarr greatly influenced his later films, starting with Gerry (2002), where Van Sant also began using very long, continuous shots.
Supporting human rights
In 2011, Tarr joined the Board of Directors of Cine Foundation International, a group that supports cinema and human rights. He spoke out when filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof were imprisoned. He said that attacking filmmaking is an attack on human culture. He believed it was everyone's job to speak honestly about their country and show the world around them.
Awards and recognition
Béla Tarr has received several awards for his lifetime achievements in film:
- In September 2012, he received a special award at the BIAFF festival.
- In June 2017, he was honored at the Sardinia Film Festival.
- In December 2022, he received a lifetime achievement award at the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK).
- In November 2024, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 37th Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF).
His views on the world
In his younger years, Tarr was interested in left-wing and anarchist ideas. He still calls himself an anarchist today and does not believe in God.
Tarr is also a critic of nationalism, which is when people think their own country is better than all others. In 2016, he said that leaders like Donald Trump, Viktor Orbán, and Marine Le Pen were a "shame" for their countries. He has also spoken out in favor of helping people who are forced to leave their homes. He believes that people should take responsibility for the problems they create in the world.
In December 2023, Tarr and 50 other filmmakers signed a letter asking for a ceasefire and an end to violence in the conflict in Gaza. They also asked for help to reach people in need and for hostages to be released.
Filmography
Feature films
- Családi tűzfészek / Family Nest (1979)
- Szabadgyalog / The Outsider (1981)
- Panelkapcsolat / The Prefab People (1982)
- Őszi almanach / Almanac of Fall (1984)
- Kárhozat / Damnation (1988)
- Sátántangó / Satantango (1994)
- Werckmeister harmóniák / Werckmeister Harmonies (2000)
- A londoni férfi / The Man from London (2007)
- A torinói ló / The Turin Horse (2011)
Television films
- Macbeth (1982)
Short films
- Hotel Magnezit (1978)
- Cinemarxisme (1979)
- Utazás az alföldön / Journey on the Plain (1995)
- Visions of Europe (film) (2004)
- segment: Prologue
Documentary films
- Az utolsó hajó / The Last Boat (1990), a part of City Life
- Muhamed (2017)
- Missing People (2019)
Images for kids
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Béla Tarr in 1983
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Tarr presenting a film by Hu Bo in 2018
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See also
In Spanish: Béla Tarr para niños
