Fata Morgana

by Eszter Cseke
22’, Hungary, 2008

A village of coloured houses, hidden in the Romanian mountains; only many old people and very few young; many thirty-somethings, semi-alcoholic or worse, who can’t find work; a single young woman: Elena. This is the picture that forms the background for this documentary. The greatest failure of this society is that young men cannot find young women to marry. Alcohol seems their only companion. Elena does not go out and does not go to parties, and when she does go to the bar she speaks very little with the young men who are always half drunk. More than a real woman, she seems like a mirage, a Fata Morgana. Elena goes away. The young men remain alone. A violinist plays old traditional melodies and, in the end, he too stops playing.

Eszter Cseke
Born in 1980, she is a director and journalist. After studying law at the University of Miskolc, Hungary, she studied economics and communications in the U.S. She recently earned a diploma from the SZFE Hungarian Film Academy. In 2009 she won the Prima Primissima Junior Award in journalism and with her short film, Fata Morgana, has participated in numerous international festivals and received various awards.