BEAST / CSICSKA

STORY

István Balogh, is a not too rich farmer has total control over his wife, family and slave. He does all it takes to guard the family
image created by the rigid traditions in his farm in rural Hungary.
The characters meet their tragic fate through their close but at the same time extreme relationships.
This film has been inspired by articles, news items and memories of people who have survived such situations.

In Hungary we see the renaissance of “csicskáztatás”, a kind of modern-day slavery. The word has now lost its original meaning in Hungarian prison and military slang; today we speak about
the forced work of homeless people and wrecks or fallen addicts lacking love and will as well as the confiscation of their benefits and pensions.

In many cases slave-owners buy their victims cheap from special agents and then force them under inhuman circumstances to work and fully serve the whole family. The worker quickly becomes a slave, a “csicska”.

A tragic consequence of this widespread phenomenon is that the acceptance of the slave by the family can mean his very survival even when it happens with vile and selfish intentions.

In these archaic communities there is no clear distinction between the slave and the family members. These cruelly exploited people, unable to take part in everyday struggles for life,
become second-class members of the community.

Thousands of people are estimated living in slavery in Hungary ten years into the third millennium.

DIRECTOR:
ATTILA TILL

PRODUCERS:
MÓNIKA MÉCS
GÁBOR RAJNA
GÁBOR SIPOS

CO-PRODUCERS:
JUDIT STALTER
CSABA TÓTH
ANDRÁS POÓS

SCREENPLAY:
ATTILA TILL

DOP:
IMRE JUHÁSZ

EDITOR:
BÉLA BARSI

SOUND:
CSABA MAJOR

MUSIC:
IVÁN LANTOS

MAIN CAST:
SZABOLCS THURÓCZY
BALÁZS SZITÁS
MÓNI BALSAI

YEAR OF PRODUCTION:
2011

PRODUCTION COMPANIES:
M&M FILM AND LAOKOON FILM

CO-PRODUCTION PARTNER:
MTM-SBS - TV2