
Person
Judit Elek
Directing · 1937–2025 · Budapest, Hungary
Biography
Judit Elek (10 November 1937 - 1 October 2025) was a Hungarian film director and screenwriter. She has directed 16 films between 1962 and 2006. Her film Mária-nap was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. She graduated in 1961 from the Academy of Drama and Film in Budapest (now the University of Theatre and Film Arts Budapest), and joined Mafilm as an assistant director. She is one of the founders of the Béla Balász Studio for young filmmakers. Between 1962 and 2011, she made multiple short films, documentaries and features. The renowned film Mária-nap (1984) screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. She was also one of the participants in the IFFR jubilee project 25 Encounters. Elek’s films are the subject of a focus programme at IFFR 2023, featuring titles such as Találkozás (1963), Kastélyok lakói (1966) and Istenmezején, 1972-73-ban (1974).
Known for

Nobody's Daughter
Writer

Maybe Tomorrow
Director

Encounter
Director

Maria's Day
Director

Castle Dwellers
Director

Negative history of Hungarian cinema
Self

The Trial of Martinovics and the Hungarian Jacobins
Director

A Commonplace Story
Director

How Long Does Man Live?
Director

Elie Wiesel Goes Home
Director
Filmography
- 2018After All the Dead Sing Again...Director
- 2011RetraceDirector
- 2010Negative history of Hungarian cinemaSelf
- 2006The Eighth Day of the WeekDirector
- 1997Elie Wiesel Goes HomeDirector
- 1996A Free Man – The Life of Ernő FischDirector
- 1995AwakeningDirector
- 1990Memories of a RiverDirector
- 1984Maria's DayDirector
- 1980Maybe TomorrowDirector
- 1980The Trial of Martinovics and the Hungarian JacobinsDirector
- 1976A Commonplace StoryDirector
- 1976Nobody's DaughterWriter
- 1974On the Field of God in 1972-73Director
- 1974Tamás Cseh: The First PhotoDirector
- 1970We Will Meet in 1972 – In Dark and in LightDirector
- 1969The Lady from ConstantinopleDirector
- 1967How Long Does Man Live?Director
- 1966Castle DwellersDirector
- 1963EncounterDirector
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