Response
Winner of the 2009 Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts

by Marcell Jankovics
(November 25th , 2009)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let my first words speak of the acknowledgement. First of all I thank this great distinction, the Leonardo Award to that man who has nominated me, dr. George Frater from Switzerland, then those two distinguished colleagues of mine, who have recommended me, Mr. Raoul Servais from Belgium and Mr. Charles Solomon from the United States, and, last but not least, to the honorable jury who have chosen me of several candidates. It is a great honor to stand here, before you, and accept such a great appreciation of a life long artistic activity.

I thought over nightly hours spent awaken what to tell you apart from the thanking words. Well, the result of my thoughts are strictly personal and subjective.

Awards and prizes are important because they give strength and inclination for carrying on. They reinforce us in believing in our fellow-being and oin ourselves, and push us over if the moving of our vehicle begins to halt.

According to my belief the type of creative people which I am one of have double personalities. On the one hand, if work is the word, they – we are aggressive, pushy, full of energies. We are workaholics. We want success. Success that means mostly newer and newer possibilities to work till the end of our capability. Because we enjoy our work. Work is not suffering for me, quite the opposite. It means life and pleasure, in the same time struggle in its laborious extent. What are behind this urge? Vanity? Greed? Or both? I hope still something more.

A short film of mine, Sisyphus made in 1974 is a new short version of the myth about the compulsively hard-working demigod. The film deals also with meaning the returns, purpose of success as other people may see it. Another short film of mine, Fight finished in 1977 shows the creation as strife with the substance. For the 20 years now I am working on a two and a half hours long animated adaptation of The Tragedy of Man, a drama of the greatest Hungarian playwright of the 19th century, Imre Madách. One of the key motif of this huge piece of art is struggle. All the three main character of it, the Lord Creator, Lucifer, the Devil and Adam, that is the man, turn it over in their mind.

First the Devil speaks of it in the Second scene:
“I long conflict and for strife
To bring new potent worlds to life.”

Adam understands it but in the Thirteenth scene:
“The goal is death, but life consists of struggle,
The struggle in itself must be the goal.”

The Lord God of the play can but agree with him in His very last words at the end of the play:
“Man, I have spoken: strive on, trust, have faith!”

Their declaration became my creed.

On the other hand, though we desire acceptation, appreciation, there is always an inner uncertainty about the merit of our work. We are constantly scared of the reactions. Facing the audience, this cruel dragon with thousand heads fills me with much fear, only one fear is bigger than that, that the dragon has but seven or still fewer heads, that is we have no real interested and understanding audience. Fans are often more impressed by fame and success itself than by products.

We are living in an era of global paradigmatic changes which brings a real end to our familiar world. Nobody can be sure that those being applauded this year will be remembered the next. Even Woody Allen is interested nothing but in eternity. In one of his films he was inquired about his bad temper. His answer came in his typical style: “I have just heared in the television that the world will come to an end in fifteen billion years. Then why have I written my dissertation?”

What is the worth of even a great success, if nobody will read a line of my books, or look at a film of mine? The Romans had a saying: “The books have their fate.” What will the fate of our books, films, dramas etc. in an age when the coming generations find us boring? Let’s do hope that they won’t. Let me find unclouded pleasure in my Award.
Thank you for your kind attention.