Trivia / The Tragedy of Man

• Troubled Production: Production started in 1983, originally envisioned as a Biblical epic to be co-produced and financed by an American backer, until the latter dropped out around the late '80s. The animation studio rushed to reconfigure the project, deciding to adapt the play Tragedy of Man instead. The animating process began in 1988. A couple years later, the Soviet Union collapsed, taking Hungary's former studio system with it, along with shoving the country's already waning animation industry further downhill. Without state-sponsored backing, what was initially envisioned as a 6 year project only landed in theaters in 2011 — the time frame was indeed correct, the animation did take about 6 years to complete, with the rest of that time being spent on trying to raise funds. Each of the film's 15 acts, all done in their own distinct art and animation style, were completed out of order and showcased at various film festivals to get funding. The creators even asked The BBC for help, only to be rejected. Most of the voice actors had to be replaced as the originals got too old for their roles. In the end, director Marcell Jankovics licencing his older animated short Sisyphus for a GM car commercial gave him a financial boost, and he was happy the movie got finished at all.

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