Viktoria Szemeredy is a screenwriter and director who completed her MA in Filmmaking at Raindance in 2019 and is now a mentor on the programme. Her film Butterfly Daughter just won five awards, including Best Film of the Festival at the Monochrome Film Festival.
We sat down with Viktoria to see just how she created her award winning film.
1. Tell us what you were doing before you became a filmmaker
I worked as a medical doctor in Intensive Care, and Emergency then switched to being a psychotherapist.
Sometimes I long for the ‘boring’ days in ER when I enter pre-production.
2. What made you decide to become a filmmaker? Did you have any previous film training?
No, I haven’t. I always wanted to be a filmmaker, though, but my parents have other thoughts, and I was not much of a rebel in my teenage years.
Still, whenever I was asked at the Medical University about my interests, I always stated that I’d never become a doctor. I considered myself a storyteller.
3. You have taken the Raindance MA training. In short, can you explain how it enabled you to engage and develop your career? HAs it amplified your ambition?
I have a very simple answer to that. My mentors, Ruth Paxton and Stephan Mallmann inspired and empowered me to find my voice in filmmaking, and they constantly pushed me over my boundaries.
I made Butterfly Daughter with their continuous support, which premiered at the Raindance MA showcase in 2018. And yes, during this process, I realised that there wasn’t anything else I could do ever again, so I became a full-time filmmaker.
4. What inspired you to make Butterfly Daughter?
I saw a documentary stage play in Budapest where a 12-year-old girl recalled her story about almost having been kidnapped and sold to a sex slave. The bait was simply hot chocolate in bed.
I instantly knew that I had to take her story further and raise questions, inspire discussion about online chatting with a stranger.
5. What was the greatest barrier to making this?
It was nearly impossible to raise funds for the short film because I was an outsider in the industry. And it was equally challenging to find a producer who could help me make this happen.
6. What was the most enjoyable part of making Butterfly Daughter
I love being on set. That is the calmest and most joyful part of filmmaking for me; working with a brilliant cast and crew and holding the space for them to bring the best out of them.
Those four days of shooting Butterfly Daughter were imprinted into my presence on set as a director. And according to the crew, those four days were like ‘being on a long Zen retreat’.
This is what’s most important for me when shooting a film; to keep calm and capture the magic.
7. Can you think of any of the elements that has attracted so many awards?
The film still receives appreciation because I got to work with the most notable industry professionals, exceptional filmmakers who were all committed to making this film. I think the importance of the topic got them on board.
Another aspect is that it was very well prepared. Because of the low budget, we didn’t rely on much spontaneity while shooting the film.
I knew exactly what I wanted to see on screen, and we worked towards that.
8. Your festival trail has been very lengthy and successful. How would you advise a reader to approach film festivals?
First, I would go for the specifics of their films. I would research film festivals around the topic of a film – this one was incredibly successful at film festivals targeting children’s rights -, an important and mostly overlooked attribute to the filmmaker – I submitted it for film festivals for women filmmakers – or simply the main trait of the film itself.
9. You have a great press kit and social media presence for their film. What are the main details you needed to create? And can we see the film anywhere?
Besides the synopsis and the motivation for making this film, I usually shared the beautiful poster of the film and some stills
You can also watch the full film of Butterfly Daughter here:
10. Following this success, what is your next project?
After completing Butterfly Daughter (2018), I made Metaphorms (2019) and U up? (2020), both of which were screened at Raindance Film Festival, and right now, I am completing my latest short film, the 30-minute-long Dividing Line.
After that, hopefully, I can focus on my first feature-length project.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the Raindance Higher Education programmes take a look at the MA in Filmmaking & MA in Screenwriting pages and maybe you’ll be the next person we interview with an award winning short!
Raindance promotes and supports independent filmmaking and filmmakers.
From new and emerging to industry pros, Raindance connects, trains, supports, and promotes visual storytellers through every step of their career.
The Raindance Film Festival runs each Summer in London’s Leicester Square.
Raindance has been delivering film training since 1992. A wide range of Open Classes to a 2 year HND Level 5 BTEC in Moving Images to a Postgraduate Film Degree are delivered to students on five continents, both in person and online.
