The festival is the first in Hungary to concentrate specifically on the Roma. Although plenty of films about Roma show as part of other film festivals, the goal was to raise the profile of these films by offering a general overview. At a time in Hungary when anti-Roma sentiment is growing, the festival places an emphasis on similarities rather than differences.
There is no complete filmography for works that deal with the topic of the Roma, and we want to remedy this in the future, said journalist Éva Kalla, who came up with the idea to start the festival last year. Films in such a filmography ought not to include only ones about Roma, but also those in which Roma play roles, because this says a lot about the minority-majority relationship, she added.
The film director Mária Sós said some of the films show extraordinarily negative aspects of Roma integration, while others show progress in the area.
Discussions and talks will follow the screenings on issues such as the question of schooling and national pride. One of the talks is entitled Gypsy...crime?
The films can be seen for a token price of 100 forints.
The festival is supported by the Hungarian National Film Archive, the Open Society Archives, CineFest, the Dunatáj Foundation and DocuArt.
The Festival will open at the Urania National Film Theatre with a concert by the Szilvási Gipsy Folk Band and Mitsoura.
Author: Éva Kelemen / Photo: Dániel Kováts
