József Gallai
József Gallai

After watching Lady in the Water (2006), József Gallai decided to deal with filmmaking and started writing screenplays and short stories. Between 2009 and 2012 he was mainly involved in amateur films in various genres.

In 2014, he wrote and co-directed Hungary's first feature length found footage horror Bodom (2014). In this year the movie opened the Bram Stoker International Film Festival in Whitby, UK as well as collected numerous nominations on film festivals including 30 Dies Festival in Andorra, Golden Rake Award for Indie Horror and New York Scary Film Awards in the US and Amazon Horror Awards in Brazil.

In 2015 Bodom was in the final competition at the Full Moon Horror & Fantasy Film Festival in Romania, competing with award winning films such as Welp (2014), Horsehead (2014) and Réalité (2014).

In the beginning of 2016 his next horror movie Moth (2016) was completed and finished 4th Best Feature Film at the International Horror Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio. The movie has been called a "thought-provoking and chilling film" by Found Footage Fiction and a "front running for a new horror niche" by Horror Habit. According to Horror Asylum, Moth is "an unusual experience with some moment reminding the author of David Lynch's Inland Empire (2006)".

In the end of 2016 Gallai finished his fourth found footage feature A Guidebook to Killing Your Ex (2016), being described as an "enjoyably sinister movie with a delightfully unhinged central performance" by UK Film Review and collecting further positive reviews from Found Footage Critic, Top Found Footage Films and Warped Perspective as well as three nominations (including Best Original Screenplay of a Feature Film) on the International Filmmaker Festival World Cinema in Nice in 2017.

In 2018 he completed his next short film Echoes (2018), which will be part of a horror anthology titled Blood Tales. He also directed two internationally acknowledged films in 2019 (Spirits in the Dark, The Whispering Man) that are set to be released worldwide in 2020 by Wild Eye Releasing.

Presently, Gallai is working on his next paranormal thriller The Poltergeist Diaries featuring Oscar nominated Eric Roberts.

József Gallai awards and nominations
Year Category Subcategory Info Movie/Tv Series
2025 Haunted House FearFest Winner Jury Prize Best Paranormal Feature (Tommy Lentsch, Gergö Elekes, Malachy Fergus Godfrey, Roxanne Rix, József Gallai, Beáta Boldog, Barry Vonk, Kevin Cuong Phu Nguyen, Marvin Maddicks Jr., Tracy Allen, Roy McClurg Jr., Natasha Chisdes, Joseph Richmond, Eric Ziegmont) The Black-Eyed Children
2023 Black Cat Award International Film Festival Winner Black Cat Award Best Long Science Fiction Film (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
2023 Black Swan International Film Festival Winner Best of Category Award Best Performing Arts (Laura Ellen Wilson, Laura Saxon, Tom Sizemore, Robert LaSardo, Simon Bamford, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Shawn Michael Clankie, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pál Marton, Péter Krenács, Bálint Szántó) Project Skyquake
2023 Black Swan International Film Festival Winner Critic's Choice Award Best Narrative Feature (Roy McClurg Jr., Kai Destiny, Roderick M. Gordon, Kevin Cuong Phu Nguyen, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pete Baez, Beáta Boldog, Stephen Sid Jardine) Project Skyquake
2023 Black Swan International Film Festival Winner Critic's Choice Award Best Director - July (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
2023 DRUK International Film Festival Winner Critic's Choice Award Best International Narrative Feature (Roy McClurg Jr., Kai Destiny, Roderick M. Gordon, Kevin Cuong Phu Nguyen, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pete Baez, Beáta Boldog, Stephen Sid Jardine) Project Skyquake
2022 International Motion Picture Awards Winner Special Jury Award Best Emerging Filmmaker (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
2022 Vegas Movie Awards Winner Award of Prestige Best Sci-Fi (Roy McClurg Jr., Kai Destiny, Roderick M. Gordon, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pete Baez, Beáta Boldog, Stephen Sid Jardine) Project Skyquake
2022 Vegas Movie Awards Winner Award of Prestige Best Director / Feature (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
2022 Vegas Movie Awards Winner Award of Prestige Best Ensemble (Laura Ellen Wilson, Laura Saxon, Tom Sizemore, Robert LaSardo, Simon Bamford, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Shawn Michael Clankie, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pál Marton, Péter Krenács, Bálint Szántó) Project Skyquake
2022 Virgin Spring Cinefest Winner Jury Prize Best Horror / Science Fiction / Genre Feature Film (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
Year Category Subcategory Info Movie/Tv Series
2023 Black Swan International Film Festival Nominee Best of Category Award Best Cinematography (Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Andreas H Grønner, Fershid Emini) Project Skyquake
2022 Brooklyn SciFi Film Festival Nominee Jury Award Best Feature Film (Roy McClurg Jr., Kai Destiny, Roderick M. Gordon, Kevin Cuong Phu Nguyen, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pete Baez, Beáta Boldog, Stephen Sid Jardine) Project Skyquake
2022 Sweden Film Awards Nominee Sweden Film Award Best Feature Film (Roy McClurg Jr., Kai Destiny, Roderick M. Gordon, Kevin Cuong Phu Nguyen, Jon Vangdal Aamaas, Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Pete Baez, Beáta Boldog, Stephen Sid Jardine) Project Skyquake
2022 Tietê International Film Awards Nominee Tiete Film Festival Award Best Screenplay (József Gallai) Project Skyquake
2022 Tietê International Film Awards Nominee Tiete Film Festival Award Best Cinematography (Gergö Elekes, József Gallai, Andreas H Grønner, Fershid Emini) Project Skyquake
József Gallai profile photos