Gecse Annabella et al. (szerk.): Tisicum - A Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok Megyei Múzeumok Évkönyve 18. (Szolnok, 2009)
Történelem - Szabó Anna Viola: Forog a film a Hortobágyon
Történelem Anna Viola Szabó The film is rolling in the Hortobágy This paper analyses the depiction of the Hortobágy in films since the invention of moving pictures until the 1930's trying to represent the characteristics and typical elements using the examples of three films of different types. Regardless of the genre (educational, artistic or documentary), the Hortobágy always appears as the symbol of the Hungarian psycho, as the cradle and guard of Hungarian culture in visual representations, sometimes totally independent from reality and often in romantic and pathetic style. The first attempts were made for the Uránia Scientific Theatre of Budapest during the summer of 1902 as visual aids to a projected presentation of the Hortobágy and the city of Debrecen. These sketches were only a few seconds in length, and showed the everyday life of the main street of Debrecen: the market place, carters, a wedding at the main church; or some elements of life in the puszta deemed as picturesque: a donkey race, throwing headrope, driving cattle out of the pen, a frolic in the inn, etc. These sketches were made by award winning photographer György Haranghy, and this was his only attempt of this kind. The next experiment was the recording of a popular theatre play in 1912 entitled The rangeman shot in the original settings and in the scenery of a theatre in a studio in Budapest. The film has disappeared, we only have documents and reports of the shooting, but it is probable that it was made for an order from abroad to advertise and popularise the romance of the “puszta”. The third piece, which could really be described as a movie, was made by Georg Hollering in 1932 called Hortobágy, which included real subject pictures shot in the “puszta” and was based upon a screenplay by writer Zsigmond Móricz. The cameraman of the movie was László Schaffer, who had also co-worked with Walter Ruttman, and accordingly, the visual world of the film is expressive, and lively, and the meaning evolves from the parallel sequences of pictures put together. The poor acting of the natural characters, the didactic intention, and the reality of the present Hortobágy are dwarfed by the artistic and fascinating visual aspect: the film represents the beauty and romanticism of a fairy-tale “puszta” in the threatening atmosphere of the 1930’s. 227
