It is the longing for artistic and academic freedom that prompts the students of the Budapest University of Theatre and Film Arts (SZFE) to start their protest in September 2020. A protest against the Hungarian government's sudden withdrawal of their university's autonomy. Since then, the actions of the Hungarian students have garnered worldwide attention: Why has the restructuring of a small Budapest university suddenly become so significant that theater makers, intellectuals, and private individuals from Berlin to New York are showing solidarity with the students?

Hungarian students and filmmakers discuss their protest at FILM WITHOUT BORDERS and how they plan to bridge the gap created by the Orbán government's oppression of their 156-year-old university with their new association, freeSZFE.

Discussion and workshop