BUDAPEST: The coming-of-age drama Orphan / Árva by Academy Award winner László Nemes has been selected as Hungary’s candidate for the 98th Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences award in the Best International Feature Film category.
1957. In Budapest, after the uprising against the Communist regime, a young Jewish boy, Andor, raised by his mother with idealised tales of his deceased father, has his world turned upside down when a brutish man appears, claiming to be his true father.
A coproduction between Hungary, UK, France, and Germany, Orphan had its world premiere in the main competition of the Venice International Film Festival.
It was produced by Pioneer Productions, Good Chaos, Mid March Media, and AR Content, in coproduction with Lumen, and Twenty Twenty Vision Filmproduktion. The National Film Institute – Hungary (NFI), Mid March Media and AR Content alongside the Global Screen Fund, CNC, and FFA backed the project.
New Europe Film Sales and Charades are handling the sales.
László Nemes’ Son of Saul / Saul fia won the Academy Award for Best International Feature in 2015, being the second Hungarian film to receive this award after István Szabó’s Mephisto in 1981.
The shortlist in the international film category will be unveiled on 16 December 2025, followed by the nominations on 22 January, and the 98th annual award of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on 15 March 2026.