The Grandfather Puzzle

Overview

Searching for a connection with her mysterious, austere grandfather, Ora DeKornfeld travels to his childhood home in Hungary, where she is swept up in nothing short of a fairytale. The childhood home turns out to be a castle on a 6,000-acre estate. Her grandfather was a baron, and their family was central to the economic and cultural lifeblood of the local community. Suddenly, Ora finds herself ushered through town, meeting curious locals at every corner who greet her with warm hospitality. A question emerges: why would her family leave all this behind? The town, like her grandfather, holds its painful history at arm’s length. Moving between fable and reckoning, whimsy and grief, this deeply personal film explores an identity shaped equally by what was lost and buried and what was lovingly preserved.

Ora DeKornfeld