“Slippery, supple and sinuous” – Variety’s Jessica Kiang “I was taken by its mystery” – The New York Times’ Manohla Dargis “The outta-left-field pleasant surprise of Toronto IFF” – Rolling Stone’s David Fear “haunting and mysterious” – IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio    

At the meeting of the Hungarian Oscar Selection Committee held on the 23rd November, it was announced that Hungary will enter Lili Horvát’s PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME, which explores the role of projections in love and about the fine line between romance and madness, to be considered for nomination in the “Academy Awards - Best International Film” category.  

Following its world premiere at Venice Days, PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME produced by Dóra Csernátony, Lili Horvát, Péter Miskolczi for Poste Restante, was premiered in North America as one of the few titles selected at this year’s special edition of the Toronto IFF.  

Preparations To Be Together For An Unknown Period Of Time (Photo: Poste Restante)

The Hungarian Oscar Committee included Csaba Káel Government Commissioner for the Development of the Hungarian Motion Picture Industry and Chairman of the National Film Institute, Csaba Bereczki film director, Tibor Fonyódi screenwriter, András Kálmán film distribution expert, Ákos Pesti producer and Emil Novák cinematographer.    

PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME  

SYNOPSIS
Márta, a 40-year-old neurosurgeon, falls in love. She leaves her shining American career behind and returns to Budapest to start a new life with the man she loves. But she waits for him at the Liberty Bridge in vain - he does not appear at their rendezvous. Márta starts to search for him desperately, but when she finally finds him, the love of her life claims that they have never met before.  

TRAILER:

DIRECTOR’S NOTE
“To me, Preparations... is primarily a personal story about the role of projection in love. Our film plays out in the unsettlingly murky no-man's-land that separates love from madness. To what extent do we construct love stories within ourselves? How far does our desired reality go, and where does it meet actual reality? How differently can two people experience the same love? Preparations... shows the inner journey of a strong, determined and yet fragile woman: a neurosurgeon who has achieved everything in her career, yet something fundamental is deeply missing from her life.” - Lili Horvát writer-director.  

Lili Horvát (Budapest, 1982) studied audiovisual arts at the Sorbonne Nouvelle in Paris and film directing at the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest. The Wednesday Child, Horvát's first feature won the East of West Award at Karlovy Vary 2015, and received numerous awards worldwide. In 2016, Horvát co-founded the production company Poste Restante, which produced her second feature, Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time with the support of the National Film Institute – Hungary.    

Festival Awards: https://nfi.hu/en/film/preparations-to-be-together-for-an-unknown-period-of-time 

First Reviews : https://nfi.hu/en/news/lili-horvats-second-feature-on-show-at-toronto-iff

Interview with Lili Horvát : https://youtu.be/ZGbY8LqJjdc

Sales : NFI World Sales  

Festivals : National Film Institute – Hungary