Washington has embraced Hungarian folk culture, which is capable of innovation, colourful and traditional yet modern – said Deputy Prime Minister Tibor Navracsics this Tuesday in Budapest at the premiere of the documentary ‘Hungarian Fence’, dealing with Hungary’s status as guest of honour at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington last year.

As the Deputy Prime Minister stressed it, “I think we were able to show Washington such a Hungary which is as colourful and just as modern as the United States. Moreover, we were able to show that any stereotypical sneering of this region and its related nations and nationalities is a fatal error”.

Pál Hatos, General Director of the Balassi Institute emphasized before the screening that the special guest status of Hungary was both a milestone in Hungarian cultural diplomacy and Hungarian presence in Washington as well.

The nearly 100-minute-long documentary of Dániel Kresmery narrates the occurrences at the festival to the audience within frames of a story and with help of the instrument of cinema it does attempt to capture the collaboration between Hungarian institutions, the team of Hungarian performers, Hungarian and American partners and between American Hungarians.

Hungary attended the Smithsonian Folklife Festival as a special guest for the first time between June 26 and July 7 in 2013. The richness and variety of available programs provided an opportunity for visitors to meet the distinctness of Hungarian music, folk dance, traditional crafts and gastronomy too.

(Ministry of Public Administration and Justice)