Hungarian production has never received such a prestigious appearance. Beta Films and Robert Lantos' historical series Hunyadi, which will debut at the event under the title Rise of the Raven on October 22, 2024.
MIPCOM CANNES is Europe's most prestigious television event, where a production born in East-Central European cooperation may soon be in the center of attention. The event is attended by the biggest television professionals and the heads of the world's major content production companies, but what is most important is that it is here that what will be shown on the screen in the coming months and year will also be decided.
The premiere of the ten-part Hunyadi will be held on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. in the auditorium of the Festival Palace, and European film big guns will also participate in the presentation.
Hunyadi will have a red carpet premiere in Cannes, a Hungarian production has never received such a distinguished appearance.
At the premiere, L. Kádár Gellert, who plays the title character János Hunyadi, as well as Vivien Rujder, who plays his wife in the film, and Franciska Törőcsik, who plays his first love, Mara, will also be there, as well as Mariann Hermányi (Shadow and Bone), Ernő Fekete (Saul's son), Elena Rusconi (6 Underground) and all the directors, the Oscar nominee Robert Dornhelm, as well as Nagypál Orsi, Attila Szász and Balázs Lengyel are also participating, the latter also writing the series as showrunner.
It reshaped the entire continent
The series is sold abroad under the title Rise of the Raven, considering that this bird is also the coat of arms of the Hunyadis. The ten, one-hour episodes each, deal with the life of János Hunyadi, the general, who in the XV. was one of the outstanding figures of 19th century Europe. Defying the overwhelming force, he won a decisive victory in the battle of Nándorfehérvár, thereby changing the history of the whole of Europe.
According to producer Robert Lantos, the television production follows the growing up story of a village boy, who becomes a fearless warrior, the savior of Europe, for whom the noon bell tolls.
"I've been excited by the sound of the noon bell since I was a child. Mór Bán's highly successful novels gave me the opportunity to tell this story"
- quotes the words of Lantos in the press material.
The Hunyadi epic is both in its history and on the screen. With its ambitious storytelling and high-quality production, an exceptionally creative team and a truly international cast, it has been attracting increasing interest worldwide since its announcement, and we are delighted to host the first screening in Cannes.
- said Lucy Smith, director of MIPCOM CANNES and MIP LONDON.
Hunyadi was produced with more than 600 international actors and stuntmen, and the special feature of the work is that the characters speak in their own mother tongue, thereby increasing historical authenticity. The series will be broadcast in Hungary on TV2 in early 2025.
Mór Bán poured clean water into the glass
The author of the Hunyadi novels posted the following regarding the title of the series:
"I would like to thank everyone for the enthusiastic feedback regarding the preview of the Hunyadi TV series. Together with you, I am also looking forward to the presentation, enthusiastically, sometimes anxiously, because after all, everything (or a significant part of it) that I have written on a few thousand pages (and will write more) will come to life in almost ten hours of motion pictures. Now I want to clarify an important matter.
Some of you are puzzled by the title of the series. You asked why the title of the series is not Hunyadi, why it will have an English title"
- writes the author.
"Then let's pour clean water into the glass! The title of the series is HUNYADI. This is how it will work in Hungary, of course. The international title is RISE OF THE RAVEN.
The author explains this by saying that in the rest of the world
"We have never really told the legend of the southern bell until now. They don't know Hunyadi's heroic deed. Now we have finally completed what we hope is an international series that will tell the rest of the world who János Hunyadi was and what Europe owes him."
As he writes, "as I mentioned in a comment, the title of BRAVEHEART was not William Wallace either. Neither he nor Hunyadi are as well-known names in the world as Napoleon or Cleopatra.
We hope this series contributes to making it more and more like that!
Bán concludes his post.
Featured image: Hungarian Motion Picture Festival Facebook page
