My Mother Is The Best

The story of a Mother’s Day in the life of LALI (12) who lives alone with his severely narcissistic, alcoholic mother who physically and emotionally abuses and humiliates him. Despite all this, or maybe because of this, Lali’s attachment to his mother is stronger than the average kids’ – he sees his mother as the best mother in the world, even if he has to lie to protect this image. He escapes reality and prays to God at night, asking that his mother would change. But the sad reality remains that his alcoholic mother cannot give up drinking: she is only focused on herself, and cannot function as a mother. So Lali is left with an imaginary mother who only exists in his fantasies.

  • Gergely Fonyo
    Director
    Made in Hungaria
  • Gergely Fonyo
    Writer
  • Katalin Fonyo
    Producer
  • Gabor Ferenczy
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Az én anyukám a legeslegjobb
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    15 minutes 12 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 1, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    24,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Hungary
  • Country of Filming:
    Hungary
  • Language:
    Hungarian
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1:1,85
  • Film Color:
    Black & White
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • International Children's Rights Film Festival
    Istambul
    Turkey
    November 20, 2020
    Official Selection
  • International Children's Film Festival

    Bangladesh
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Gergely Fonyo

Gergely is a prolific feature film and television director in his native Hungary. His directorial debut "Johnny Famous" won Best Picture at the Hungarian Film Week in 2000. His musical-comedy feature MADE IN HUNGARIA was selected for Karlovy Vary Variety Critics Choice, and won Best Picture at the Granada Film Festival in 2009. THE HOUSE OF THE STONE MONKEYS, a TV-movie he directed was nominated for at Banff World Media Festival, and at the Sichuan International TV Festival in 2015. His other notable work includes HBO Hungary’s dramedy series TARSAS JATEK/WHEN SHALL WE KISS.
As an author, Gergely is interested in telling stories about how traumatic childhood experiences, addiction, abuse, social discrimination and minority existence shape our lives and identity.

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Director Statement

Completed in 2019, This film is based on my own childhood. My mother was an alcoholic. I carried this secret for many years, I was ashamed about what went on at home. I was always jealous of the kids who had normal parents: they were the ones getting the awards, they got presents, recognition, and their parents sat there proud at school events. Unfortunately, not every kid is so lucky. Statistics show that all over the world, millions of children live with parents who are alcoholics. In the United States, 1 in every 10 children lives in a home with an alcoholic parent. In my native Hungary, 19.3% of the population is abusing alcohol in some form – the highest rate in the world.

These kids go to school each day from a home where they are neglected, humiliated and often get beat up each night. But they don’t ever tell anyone about what happens because they are ashamed, and because they love their parents unconditionally. They don’t have a voice, they don’t have representation. They just suffer in silence. I’d like to tell the story of these kids in this short film.