Gemenc - The Wild Danube

Director: Frigyes Olma

Writer: Olma Frigyes
Cinematographer: Balázs Barkuti, Frigyes Olma, György Utassy

The landscape of Gemenc, the largest floodplain woods of Central Europe, is living and developing together with its waters. The river Danube defines the life of the drainage area’s flora and fauna, either by protecting or threatening, building or vanishing the scenery. The forest and the river provide an outstanding habitat for their residents, families of deers, boars, eagles, jackals, beavers, cranes and kingfishers of the Gemenc floodplain woods, including one of the area’s greatest population of the protected black storks. This stunning nature documentary - released with the support of WWF Hungary -  gives us insight into their lives. The film is a result of five years’ stringent and tenacious work: special disguised wildlife monitoring cameras, underwater or drone cameras were used to capture the wildlife of the drainage area including precious and previously unseen images of black storks nesting and raising up their squealers, or dramatic recordings of the big flood of the Danube in 2013. Besides the area’s wildlife, the documentary puts great emphasis on the presentation of the floodplain woods’ unique atmosphere as well, by capturing dawning landscapes and by numerous mid-air shots made with drones, while playing the evergreen melodies of Strauss, Vivaldi, Verdi, Puccini, Mahler and Bartók in the background.