Budapest
A very successful and eternally unsatisfied ghost writer, José Costa (Leonardo Medeiros), is returning from his participation in a congress for anonymous writers in Istanbul. But unforeseen circumstances force his flight to land in Budapest, before arriving in Rio de Janeiro. From then on, he starts to live a double life between his marriage to an egocentric television news presenter (Giovanna Antonelli) and a love story with teacher Kriska (Hungarian actress Gabriella Harmoni).
The scene is set for Budapest, adapted from the best-seller by Chico Buarque, the first dramatic feature directed by Walter Carvalho. Famous for his work as a director of photography, Carvalho was responsible for the co-direction of Cazuza – Time Doesn’t Stand Still (with Sandra Werneck) and many documentaries, such as The Window to the Soul (in partnership with João Jardim). After having concentrated for years behind the camera, he now commands the whole production, using his knowledge of image to highlight the contrasts between Hungary and Brazil.
The film develops through a writer’s perspective, provoking the viewer to ponder the fantasy world of ideal women in conflict with real woman in a dream world full of cerebral labyrinths. “When writing the script, we thought of some things that had not appeared in the book. But everything stayed loyal to Chico’s fancy, without adding anything that he would not have written, had he thought of it,” pointed out producer and screenwriter Rita Buzzar, who after reading the book in just one night didn’t hesitate to buy the film rights.
According to Leonardo Medeiros, the biggest challenge of the role was learning Hungarian and having to speak the language naturally. “I started taking classes three months before, and then realised I would never learn it in a lifetime,” he confessed. In order to pretend that he knew the language, he adopted a Hungarian intonation, as if it were an expression in Portuguese. “I was given a character who speaks two unknown languages: Hungarian and Carioca. I still haven’t learned either of them!”
But nothing is lost in the translation. On the contrary, the sense of discovery becomes essential to the film. Planning to maintain the mystique and the freshness of the first meeting between the Brazilian writer and the Hungarian teacher for the cameras, director Carvalho asked Medeiros to avoid walking around the streets of Budapest and not to have any form of contact with Gabriella before filming started. “The first scene was filmed without them knowing each other, to preserve the impression of a first meeting. We did three takes, but we used the first,” the director revealed.
