István Szőts
István Szőts (June 30, 1912 – November 6, 1998) was a Hungarian screenwriter and film director. He was born in Szentgyörgyválya (now Valea Sângeorgiului, Călan, Romania), and later moved with his father to Hungary. Szőts studied fine arts at the painting school of the two masters, Vilmos Aba-Novák and Béla Iványi-Grünwald.
István Szőts
- Name
- István Szőts
- Born
- 30 June 1912
- Birthplace
- Szentgyörgyválya, Austria-Hungary
- Died
- 6 November 1998
- Place of death
- Vienna, Austria
- Occupation
- Screenwriter, director
- Known for
- Directing the 1942 movie People of the Mountains
- Spouse
- Alice Szellay
- Awards
- Kossuth Prize (1992)
- Nationality
- Hungary
- Honours
- Kossuth Prize · Hungarian Heritage Award
- Languages
- Hungarian
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q722844 · wikipedia · István Szőts
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The documentary record
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Institutions cited
Bibliothèque nationale de France · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
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Biography
Biography
In 1939 he worked at Hunnia, where he was assistant to director Lajos Zilahy.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — István Szőts • Born — 30 June 1912 • Birthplace — Szentgyörgyválya, Austria-Hungary • Died — 6 November 1998 • Place of death — Vienna, Austria • Resting Place — Farkasréti Cemetery • Occupation — Screenwriter, director • Years Active — 1941–1975 • Known for — Directing the 1942 movie People of the Mountains • Spouse — Alice Szellay • Awards — Kossuth Prize (1992)
Documentary record
István Szőts appears in the authority records of the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek as a director (30 June 1912 – 5 November 1998). István Szőts was born on 30 June 1912 in Szentgyörgyválya, aujourd'hui Valea Sîngeorgiului, Roumanie and died on 5 November 1998 in Vienna.
Activity
Activity
He is best known for his 1942 film People of the Mountains which won first prize at the Venice Biennale. Szőts became an assistant director in 1940, and in 1942 made his first feature film People of the Mountains. Although widely acclaimed by critics, it was disapproved of by Hungary's ruling wartime government and Szőts had trouble securing backing for his future projects. It wasn't until 1947 that he was able to make his second feature film Song of the Cornfields.
Selected filmography
Selected filmography
• People of the Mountains (1942) • Loving Hearts (1944) • Song of the Cornfields (1947) • Melyiket a kilenc közül? (1956)
Places
Named by the record
Places
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Valea Sângeorgiului.
Birth place
Vienna.
Death place
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article István Szőts, revision 1346736242 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
References
Citations
References
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Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 29 August 2026.
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