An interview with Lucile Chaufour, the film’s director by Eraserhead

In the mid-eighties, defying local regulations that prohibited illegal filmmaking, Lucile Chaufour shot Super8 material about a group of Hungarian punks and how they were struggling under the communist regime. More than twenty years later, she returned several times to interview the same people about what it was like to be a punk in Hungary, what punk stood for back then and how it has changed since and also how they see life in Hungary before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Is this what they struggled for?

The Hungarian premiere of your film EAST PUNK MEMORIES will take place today at the Toldi cinema in Budapest. Can you sum up briefly what the film is about?

The film is about punk, life and, of course, politics: Hungarian punk was highly political, as they were fighting against the regime with their own means. To leave out politics completely and just to focus on the music would not have been respectful to those involved.

You did a lot of interviews between 2005 and 2011 with the same people you filmed in the mid-80s. Tell us about the way you edited the film.
I tried to show all the range of opinions and memories and not focus on one side, that’s how I could respect as much as possible the different visions. This film is about being able to talk and to hear different points of view on a situation. What is very interesting is that from a group of friends in the 80s, all positions are now represented: from left to right, and also those who do not want to take sides or do not want to deal with politics. It’s a collective portrait where each statement is reinforced, developed or contradicted by the next one. That’s the way I chose to give an authentic picture of the situation, rather than a „black and white” judgment.

The film presents a kaleidoscope view, with no censorship. Is this what you wanted to do?
Yes, I like the authentic way each character speaks: it is direct. Somehow, this is what remains from the punk years: to stand honestly for what you believe in, what you remember of that time, and I respect that. Part of the interviews were done in 2005, maybe some individuals have changed their points of view since then, but this is part of life. This film is a snapshot of a group of old punks at a certain moment of their life, about 25 years after the first shooting done in Super8 in the mid 80’s.

I know the film has been in the making for a long time. What hurdles have you had to overcome to complete the movie?
The film took very long to finish because we had quite no budget for it. No money means that you have to invest much more time and personal energy. Up until March 2013, all the screenings were done with a working copy because I could not pay for the final mix (5+1) and color correction. I got a lot of debts on it, but I’m happy we could finish the film and finally show the final version in Budapest.

Thanks for taking the time to do this interview. Any final words?
The test screening at the Toldi cinema was very good. I’m very happy to show the film there, along with the gigs, and thanks to all the people who supported the project in Hungary.

Starring: Kelemen Balázs, Tóth Miklós, Mozsik Imre, Márton Attila, Papp Zoltán György, Ványi Tamás, Rupaszov Tamás, Horváth Attila, Erdős József, Vojtkó Dezső, Asztalos Ildikó, Törjék Tünde.

Music: QSS, ETA, CPG, Kretens, Aurora, Modells, Bandanas.

MAGYAR VÁLTOZAT >>>

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