Nóra Lakos

Nora Lakos is one of those names that keeps popping up if you’re into the indie film scene, especially over in Hungary. She’s not just a director—she writes, produces, and even started Cinemira, the International Children’s Film Festival in Budapest. Her first feature, HAB (or CREAM, if you’re going by the English title), dropped in Hungarian theaters in September 2020, then made its way to HBO in 2021. And wow, did it rack up the hardware—eight awards, including Best Director and Jury Special Award at the Paris International Film Festival, plus the Gilda Award in Florence, and Best Feature Film at the New Renaissance Film Festival. Not bad for a debut. Before all that, Nora was already making waves with short films and TV series, picking up prizes and getting invites to places like Sarajevo, Encounters, Sofia, and TIFF. Her short film Edina even snagged a special mention and an award from the British Council. She studied film directing at the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest, and did stints at London Film School and INSAS in Brussels—so yeah, she’s got the chops. Right now, she’s gearing up for her second feature, which is based on the multi-award-winning Dutch novel "How I Accidentally Wrote a Book." On top of her own projects, she’s all about boosting kids’ cinema in Hungary. She kicked off Cinemira back in 2018, aiming to bring children’s films back into the spotlight. She even started a Children’s Film Academy—workshops, short films, TV series, the works. Honestly, she’s kind of a powerhouse.