Móni Balsai

One of Hungary's most popular stage and film actresses and awardee of the prestigious Jászai Mari prize for acting

Following numerous stage performances, Ms. Balsai's cinematic breakthrough arrived with the black comedy "Liza the Fox-Fairy". She won "Best Actress" honors at five international film festivals for her performance, directed by Károly Ujj Mészáros and garnering praise from both critics and audiences. In 2016, Ms. Balsai showcased her versatility in Árpád Sopsits' psyco-thriller "Strangled", and in Hungary's official 2017 submission for Best Foreign Language Film: the action-comedy "Kills on Wheels" directed by Attila Till. Her 2011 short, "Beast", was successfully shown at Cannes. She also appeared in "Couch Surf", a comedy, and the dramatic thriller "The Ambassador to Bern". Ms. Balsai's acclaimed television series roles include "Társas Játék" on HBO and "Divorce", winner of the Kamera Korrektúra prize, on RTL Klub.

Móni Balsai is a frequent presence on the Hungarian stage. She started acting in 2011 at the National Theater of Győr, soon moving to the Hungarian Theater of Pest. She is a free agent as of the 2016/2017 season; her most recent performance was in the Hungarian National Gallery's "Textúra 2016 Magyar Highlights" multi-art lecture series. She is currently performing in various productions at Centrál Theater, Thália Theater, Játékszín Theater, and Scallabouche Theater.

Additionally, Ms. Balsai is a prodigious voiceover actor, dubbing Marion Cottilard in 2015's Macbeth, for instance, after having played the character on stage herself.

Awards
2016 Hungarian Film Awards: Best Actress ("Liza the Fox-Fairy")
2016 Monte-Carlo Comedy Film Festival: Best Actress ("Liza the Fox-Fairy")
2015 Los Angeles Hungarian Film Festival: Best Actress ("Liza the Fox-Fairy")
Nocturna 2015, Madrid International Fantastic Film Festival: Best Performance (shared prize with Szabolcs Bede-Fazekas for "Liza the Fox-Fairy")
Fantaspoa 2015, Porto Alegre International: Best Actress ("Liza the Fox-Fairy")

Honors
2010 Jászai Mari Prize (Hungarian state honors for outstanding achievement in drama)
2010 Főnix Prize
2009 Gundel Artistic Prize
2009 Domján Edit Prize
2003, 2009 Kisfaludy Prize

Major Stage Roles
Eva (Antal Szerb: "Journey by Moonlight", directed by András Forgách)
Lady Macbeth (William Shakespeare: "Macbeth", Hungarian Theater of Pest)
Margaret (Tennessee Williams: "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof")
Emma (Lyudmila Ulitskaya: "Short", directed by Nóra Hidvégi )
Nora (Henrik Ibsen: "A Doll's House", Jászai Mari Theater)
Irma (Ferenc Molnár: "The Glass Slipper", directed by János Ács)
Juliet (William Shakespeare: "Romeo and Juliet", National Theater of Győr)
Luise (Friedrich Schiller: "Intrigue and Love", National Theater of Győr)