Writer/director Kornél Mundruczó on WHITE GOD

By:

white-god

White God is an independent Hungarian film about a girl who becomes separated from her pet dog when she’s forced to give him up. The dog – although captured by abusive owners —  sets out on a journey to be reunited with the girl. The film explores violence toward animals as well as a coming of age storyline for the young girl, played by Zsofia Psotta.

When asked if it was difficult to film the scenes where dogs are beaten and abused, writer and director Kornél Mundruczó says he couldn’t have done the film any other way. “We wanted to tell the truth. And if you want to tell the truth, you must deal with violence,” Mundruczó says.

That said, he wants to put everyone’s mind at ease by saying that no animals were harmed during the production of the film. “Fake blood and imagination can fuel your fantasy,” he says. In order to create tension and suspense, Mundruczó “watched a lot of Hitchcock movies” for research and also silent films. He hopes his movie shines a light on the abuse of animals.

ScreenwritingU sat down with the writer/director to discuss his process. He says his biggest challenge was making sure the story was believable, because the animals and children on set were constantly laughing and playing. “How can I dramatize…?” he says was his biggest question – especially in the editing room.

White God won the Prize Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST HERE:

Watch the trailer here:

Photo credit: ZDF/Arte

author-avatar

Jenna Milly is Editor-in-chief of ScreenwritingU Magazine, an inside source for the latest scoop from the screenwriter's POV on upcoming movies. She interviews some of the top writers in Hollywood for such movies as The Revenant, The MartianMission: Impossible and many others. She co-created the TBS microseries Gillian in Georgia. She earned her B.A. in Journalism from the University of Georgia and a M.F.A. in Screenwriting from UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television. She has written for CNN.com, The Los Angeles Times, Script Magazine, TwelvePoint, and a variety of magazines. You can follow her on Twitter: @jennamilly

No Replies to "Writer/director Kornél Mundruczó on WHITE GOD"

    Leave a reply

    Your email address will not be published.

    Join Our Magazine
    Get a free subscription to Screenwriting Magazine and download over 40 Academy Nominated screenplays.
    No Thanks
    Thanks for Joining ScreenwritingU Magazine!
    We respect your privacy. Your information is safe and will never be shared.
    Don't miss out. Join today!
    ×
    ×