Filmvetítés
On 10 August 2023, the film According to its Nature and Free was screened in Transylvania at the Double Rise Festival, organised by the Liszt Institute Sfântu Gheorghe. The historical documentary film, directed by Zsuzsanna Szebeni, director of the Hungarian Cultural Institute, not only tells the story of a unique, open-minded and self-sacrificing aristocratic woman, but also gives an insight into the everyday life of Baroness Elemérné Szilvássy Carola Bornemissza, an artist and public figure in turn-of-the-century Transylvania. The screening was followed by a panel discussion with producer Kata Molnár-Bánffy, scriptwriter Zsolna Ugron and director Zsuzsanna Szebeni.
The 70-minute historical documentary gives an insight into the cultural and social life of Transylvania in the late 19th and early 20th century, through the life of Carola Szilvássy. All this is done with the help of scene inserts based on feature film elements and historical cord documents, including special film clips and photographic material found in collections and private archives. The main mission of the film is to make the history of Transylvanian Hungarians in the first half of the 20th century more tangible for today's generations and to highlight the importance of social engagement in the present day.
The film's afterlife is special, as its gala premiere in the Uránia theatre (November 2022) was followed last year by two very important screenings in Transylvania, in the significant places of Carola Szilvássy's life: in Cluj-Napoca and in Târgu Mures. Both locations were also significant for the filming. Then came the Advent period, which brought a very large number of viewers to their TV sets: the film brought a significant amount of feedback to the creative team following the television screenings.
An extraordinary series of screenings followed, both in Hungary and in Transylvania, while the year 2023 - the 150th anniversary of Miklós Bánffy's birth - gave the film a new impetus and relevance, with requests and screenings continuing from Vienna to Sopron, from Gödöllő to Sfântu Gheorghe, from Timisoara to Oradea, from Soviat to Odorheiu Secuiesc. It is particularly prominent in the festival circuit: at Double Rise, and also at screenings at the largest Hungarian-language cultural festival in the Carpathian Basin, the Hungarian Days in Cluj-Napoca, and even at the Sapientia University Film Club in Cluj-Napoca.
After the screening of the film, there are always fascinating discussions with the filmmakers and the actors, focusing on the era or even on the beginnings of silent film. The diversity of the conversations is demonstrated by the fact that, depending on the questions asked by the participants, there are times when Miklós Bánffy is the focus, times when silent film, puppet making, First World War nursing, and times when South African conditions or the Boer War are discussed. The great success is also evidenced by the many returning viewers, who are happy to report that they are attending their third or fourth screening and discussion. The screenings in Transylvania are organised by the Liszt Institute in Sfântu Gheorghe in collaboration with Salt Communication Ltd.
On 19 August 2023, the next screening of the film will take place in the hall of Sapientia University, in the framework of the Hungarian Days in Cluj-Napoca, and will be promoted by the Székelyföld magazine with a major interview.