Elemer Ragalyi, the Hungarian cinematographer who worked with directors including Istvan Gaal and Istvan Szabo, died last week on March 30, at the age of 83.
Described by Hungary’s National Film Institute as ‘one of the greatest talents of modern Hungarian cinema’, Ragalyi shot films including Gaal’s Falcons, which won the jury prize at Cannes Film Festival in 1970.
Journey Of Hope, the Swiss feature he shot for director Xavier Koller, won the best foreign language film (now best international feature) Oscar in 1991; while Ragalyi received the Emmy for outstanding cinematography for HBO’s TV film Rasputin in 1997, which starred Alan Rickman, Ian McKellen and Greta Scacchi.
Ragalyi was often recognised by the American Society of Cinematographers, winning awards for 1989’s Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Story and 1990’s The Josephine Baker Story, and nominations for Red King, White King and Max and Helen.
Ragalyi also collaborated with Hungarian directors including Gyula Gazdag, Judit Elek, Pal Sandor and Ferenc Andras across a career that ran for over 50 years.
His most recent credit was Eva Gardos’ murder mystery Budapest Noir which he shot with his son Marci Ragalyi. Ragalyi was also active in the Digital Film Restoration Program of the National Film Institute – Film Archive, which said it is ‘eternally gratefully for his self-sacrificing work in the restoration of the Hungarian film treasure.’
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