István Szabó was born in Budapest in 1938.

In 1961 he graduated as a film director from the Academy of the Art of Theatre and Film in Budapest. His first short – his graduation film – was shown in numerous countries around the world.

He was an assistant film director and later film director in MAFILM Hungarian Film Studios.

As a member of the young filmmakers’ Béla Balázs Studio, in 1964, at the age of 26, he directed his first feature film The Age of Daydreaming, which turned him into a leading figure of the new generation of Hungarian filmmakers in the Sixties.

Szabó has won several international awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (Mephisto, 1981), the British Academy Award (Colonel Redl), the David di Donatello Award (Mephisto), the Visconti Award, the Silver Bear in Berlin (Confidence and Sweet Emma, Dear Böbe) and the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival (Clonel Redl and Hanussen). The Day of Daydreaming and 25 Fireman's Street won the prizes of Locarno Film Festival, and Father won the Gand Prix of Moscow Film Festival. He was four times nominated for the Academy Award - Oscar (Confidence, Mephisto, Colonel Redl, Hanussen) as well as for the Golden Globe with Colonel Redl and Sunshine. Many of the enlisted films above have won the prizes of Hungarian Film Critics and Hungarian Film Week.

István Szabó also directed several operas and theatre plays such as “Tannhäuser” in Opera Paris, “Boris Godunov”, 1993 Opera Leipzig, “Il Trovatore”, 1993, Vienna State Opera, Chekov’s Three Sisters in the Staatstheater Kassel and the opera version by Péter Eötvös in the Kassel Opera House, both in 2002.

István Szabó is a university professor, D.L.A.

Short films :

1961 - Concert (Oberhausen Prix)

1963 - Variations upon a theme

1963 - You (Cannes Film Festival - Jury Prix - Festival de Tour - Grand Prix)

1967 - Piety

1971 - Budapest, why I love it (Oberhausen Prix)

1977 - City Map (Oberhausen Film Festival - Grand Prix)

Long-métrages :

1964 - The Age of Daydreaming (Locarno Film Festival - Silver Prix)

1966 - Father (Grand Prix - Moscow Film Festival)

1970 - Love Film (Official Entry in Venice Film Festival)

1973 - 25 Fireman's Street (Locarno Film Festival - Grand Prix)

1974 - Premiere (TV - pièce)

1976 - Budapest Tales (Official Entry in Cannes Film Festival)

1979 - Confidence (Berlin Film Festival - Silver Bear - Academy Award Nomination -
             Best Foreign Language Film)

1979 - The Green Bird (TV - pièce)

1981 - Mephisto (Cannes Film Festival Prix -
             Academy Award winner - Best Foreign Language Film)

1982 - Catsplay (TV - pièce)

1983 - Bali (TV - pièce)

1985 - Colonel Redl (British Academy Award ( BAFTA) -
             Cannes Film Festival Prix -
             Academy Award Nomination - Best Foreign Language Film -

1988 - Hanussen (Academy Award Nomination - Best Foreign Language Film)

1991 - Meeting Venus

1991 - Sweet Emma, Dear Böbe ( sketches, nudes )
             (Berlin Film Festival - Silver Bear -
             Best European Screenplay - European Film Academy-Nomination for
             Best Actress : Johanna Ter Steege)

1995 - Offenbach’s Secret (Montreaux Special Jury Prize)

1996 - Steadying the Boat

1998 - Sunshine
         (1999: European Film Award - Best Cinematographer : Lajos Koltai
         Best European Actor : Ralph Fiennes - Toronto Film Festival - Genie Awards -
         Best Canadian Picture of the Year)

         (2000: Nominations aux Golden Globes - Meilleur Film - Meilleur Réalisateur -
         Meilleure Musique Originale)

2000 - Taking Sides (Mar del Plata : Best Director
             Flaiano Award : Best Director - European Film Academy -
             Nomination for Best Actor : Stellan Skarsgard)

2004 - Being Julia (Golden Globe for Annette Bening
             Academy Award Nomination for Annette Bening -
             Genie Award Nomination for Best Picture)

2006 - Relatives (Tiburon International Film Festival – Best Director)