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A group of young students, who have just finished exams, set out on a picnic.They bathe in the River Tisza, and one of the boys dives to the bottom, a depth of over twenty feet, and brings up a handful of mud. The others all succeed in emulating this feat, or so it would appear, until later one of them is found to be missing. A feverish hunt proves useless: the boy has been drowned, and the world seems a different place.
From reactions to this single incident. István Gaál shows how a pattern of relationships can be changed; some of the adolescents prove shallow, others reveal depth of emotion, and sense of responsibility — none is unchanged.
Before making this, his first film, Gaál studied at the Italian Centro Sperimentale. Though the spirit of Italian art hovers over his work, there are promising signs of a genuine personal style in the making.
Main Prize, Karlovy-Vary Festival; Diploma of Merit, Edinburg Festival.