Good morning, Ladies and Gentlemen.
A preeminent Hungarian director once said the following: “For me, film is like water for fish, I can’t live without it.” But this is also true for all us Hungarians: we cannot do without films. We want to be there, we want to swim in the great sea of films, we want to be in the current, in the vibrant world of art. We do not just want to watch films; we want to make them. The facts show that Hungarians have filmmaking in their blood. As soon as the first silent films were released we were already there – indeed right at the forefront. It is well known that Hungarians were there at the birth of Hollywood, but not many people know that as early as the 1910s Budapest and Kolozsvár/Cluj-Napoca were producing films of increasingly high quality every year. I do not think this was an accident: Hungarian thinking is story-driven. The Hungarian world of thought and our mentality – and perhaps language – are less philosophising, less detached, less metaphysical, and more at home in vivid stories, full of life. A Hungarian wants to tell stories. It is possible that this is linked to our Eastern heritage. We have always been attracted to the Oriental world’s great tales lasting a thousand and one nights, to the Orient’s world-famous heroic exploits and its mysterious truths. Woody Allen once said, “I’ve never learned as much from anyone as from this charismatic Hungarian.” He was talking about the book written by Lajos Egri which became the foundational work on screenwriting. It is no wonder that we got into film so quickly, and since then we have been unable to give it up. In the first half of the last century Hungarian filmmakers set out on their conquest of the world, and in the second half of the century film helped us to endure the unendurable and say the unsayable. I am convinced that films made under communism also significantly contributed to the fall of the communist system. I remember that in the 1980s every opposition group that was worth anything had its own film club. We also had one. Films helped us to understand the meaning of freedom, of that which was being kept from us. Watching films we came to the conclusion that nothing would be achieved by slow reforms, that we had to stop toddling around the sandpit, and that we had to drive out those who had taken freedom from us: down with the communists, out with the Soviets!
Dear Friends,
So we can say that the 20th century, although it consisted of two differing half-centuries, was also a glorious century of Hungarian cinema. Strangely enough, this unparalleled arc, this sweeping momentum, was broken after the fall of communism. The struggle between those who overthrew communism and the ancien régime lasted twenty years. This did Hungarian cinema no good. This could be because the state also has a responsibility for the situation of Hungarian film production. It is not a question of cinematic creativity, and fortunately this is not within the Government’s remit. Film is not only an industry, but also an art – and art represents freedom. Filmmakers know this best. But to develop the film industry you need the state. It is instructive that the new US president, who has entered office with a huge mandate, has thrown himself into renewal of the film industry there with such energy. It seems that as a partner in the film industry the state is needed everywhere. Hungarian film infrastructure – previously world-class – had been allowed to deteriorate. And something grotesque happened: for a time Hungary was left off the world film map, off the world film screen. Foreign crews chose other cities instead of Budapest, even though Hungarian film excellence is like all other kinds of Hungarian excellence: it shines with its own splendour if – and only if – it is able to create at a standard in keeping with the times, if it is in the mainstream. We need to keep meeting foreigners, see how they do things, figure out what we can add to it, and how we can do it better. If foreign crews stay away from Hungary, the driving force of inspiration will be lost and Hungarian film production will become provincial.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We estimate that Hungary lost 200 million dollars in revenues due to the misguided film policy of the first decade of this century. That ended fifteen years ago, and we can hardly remember it; but it is important to acknowledge that therefore Hungarians lost out, Hungarian filmmakers lost out, and the grand ambitions of Hungarian film also lost out.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The national government did not want to accept this. God helped us, because we found a Hungarian who understood what makes a modern film good, and how to make up for the knowledge that has been lacking. That Hungarian was Andy Vajna, whose memory will be kept in our hearts forever, and for whose unparalleled merits we are grateful. As Government Commissioner he created the institutional system around the National Film Institute, which was responsible for the renewal of Hungarian cinema. Without him we would not be where we are today. We are literally standing on the shoulders of giants. All honour to Andy Vajna!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Film is both an art and an industry. Andy knew this. As a result of these developments, Hungary attracts over 100 billion forints a year in production services spending. Even in the year of COVID, Hungarian film production generated a turnover of 220 billion forints, and today the total registered expenditure exceeds 250 billion forints. Not only are the cameras rolling, but the cash registers are ringing. Today the film industry employs more than twenty thousand people. This is the equivalent of the entire population of Fót. We have also finally reached the point at which films that stand on their own feet are being made without state support. This, after all, is what we wanted: for film to be for everyone.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today we have world-famous studios in Hungary: Korda, Origo and Stern. This makes our country the second most sought-after film production centre in Europe, after London. Of course, we also want to overtake the British capital, just as the Parliament Building in Budapest is one and a half metres longer than its counterpart in London. This development in Fót is part of this plan, and it takes the Hungarian film industry to a new level. I do not think it will surprise you to hear me say that there are a good number of liberals in the film world who are not exactly friends of the present national government. To them I say this: a filmmaker who does not vote for us also benefits from the national government’s investment. The sheer scale of this investment is fantastic. We have got our teeth into a 42-billion-forint project, the biggest ever state-funded studio development. The new studios, the large number of films being made here and the constantly developing pool of professionals all show that Hungary has once again become a globally important location for film production. This is not only due to big international productions, but also to Hungarian films and Hungarian filmmakers, who are winning over ever more viewers at home and abroad. We hope that this will be the beginning of an era of which we can all be proud.
Dear Audience,
This studio sends the message that we Hungarians must not settle for mediocrity. We are not big enough for that. We cannot afford to be mediocre. We do not care for seats in the back row or in the gods. We want the big stage. If we do something, we must do it as well as we can. My wish is that Hungarian filmmakers will take this opportunity and be among the best. With this I hand over this studio.
Go Hungary, go Hungarians!