Hungary has selected Kornel Mundruco’s White God, which won the Un Certain Regard prize at the Cannes Fest, as its entry for the Oscars’ best foreign-language film category.
The decision was made at a meeting of the Hungarian Oscar Selection Committee on Wednesday.
The film is a cautionary tale about how outcasts can rise up against their oppressors. The tale starts with the authorities deciding to heavily tax mixed-breed dogs, leading many owners to dump their mongrels on the street. Thirteen-year-old Lili fights desperately to protect her pet, Hagen, but her father casts the hound out. Hagen joins a pack of strays, which starts to attack people.
The Hungarian Oscar Committee included screenwriter Reka Divinyi, director Krisztina Deak, Hungarian Film Fund CEO Agnes Havas, university lecturer Andras Balint Kovacs, editor Istvan Kiraly, screenwriter Balazs Lovas, cinematographer Tibor Mate, producer Peter Miskolczi and Hungarian film commissioner Andrew G. Vajna, who is a member of the Hungarian government.
Meanwhile, Turkey announced that it had selected Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Winter Sleep as its contender for the foreign-language Academy Award race. The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes.
