Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr has died, and the entertainment industry is mourning the loss of an icon.
Remembering Beloved Filmmaker Béla Tarr
GettyThe European Film Academy announced Tarr’s death in a statement on Tuesday, January 6. They shared that he passed away “after a long and serious illness,” Variety reports. He was 70.
The Academy “mourns an outstanding director and a personality with a strong political voice, who is not only deeply respected by his colleagues but also celebrated by audiences worldwide,” the statement reads. “The grieving family asks for the understanding of the press and the public and that they not be sought for a statement during these difficult days.”
Tarr was an exceptional filmmaker who started his career at 16, but his work was not necessarily mainstream. He is celebrated as a “slow cinema” pioneer, and his most notable titles include “Damnation” and “Sátántangó.” The latter, which was over 7 hours long, was met with critical acclaim.
He was married to Ágnes Hranitzky, with whom he worked closely on the 2007 film “The Man From London,” starring Tilda Swinton.
Tributes Pour In
Among the tributes for Tarr is one from producer and outgoing chair of the European Film Academy, Mike Downey. In a statement, he said, “Cinema has lost one of its real heroes. One of the most exceptional voices of our times has left us,” The Guardian reports. “In a time that seems to have forgotten about basic human values, Tarr’s films still stand out magnificently. They remain incredibly relevant and outrageously potent. European cinema will miss him profoundly.”
Paul West also posted a tribute. “I heard the sad news about Béla Tarr’s passing today,” he wrote on Instagram, before sharing his connection to the filmmaker. He continued, “I was fortunate to have been commissioned by @curzonfilm to create a ‘dystopian’ landscape charcoal artwork for his “Will Heaven Fall Upon Us?” retrospective Blu-ray box set and quad poster back in 2024, working with charcoal, ink and spray paint to capture the austere, meditative quality of his films.”
The Sarajevo Film Festival penned a heartfelt tribute to Tarr, celebrating his life and his legacy. “He will always remain in our hearts,” they wrote.
Béla Tarr Discusses His Work
Tarr retired from filmmaking in 2011, The Guardian reports. He also gave an interview to the publication, reflecting on his work and how it was often seen as pessimistic, which he had not intended.
“My opinion is that we were doing comedies. You can laugh a lot,” he said. “I only ask this – how did you feel when you came out of the movie theatre after watching my film? Did you feel stronger or weaker? That’s the main question. I want you to be stronger.”
