Tamás Király emerged in the underground scene of 80s Budapest and took it by storm with his incredible fashion performances. In the very same decade, which ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Bloc, he opened the first punk boutique of the country while also designing eccentric costumes for films and theatre. His runway shows involved numerous elements that are commonplace nowadays but were truly groundbreaking at the time: such as street casting, live music and large-scale set design. International success followed soon and he became the only Eastern European designer invited to show in Berlin in 1988, alongside such icons as Vivienne Westwood and Claudia Skoda. His collection was featured in i-D and Vogue, and the German Stern magazine announced him as the Eastern European Jean Paul Gaultier.


At the time nobody would have thought that in 2013 he would be found dead in his own flat as a victim of a homicide.


I have unparalleled access to Király’s personal archives and enjoying the trust and cooperation of Ilias, who has refused to give interviews until now. The film gives an unprecedented account of the underground artist scene behind the Iron Curtain and charts this life on the ruins of the former Soviet Union, while drawing parallels between the struggles that his and our generations face.

Production Company: Mindwax
The project participiated in the following development forums:

CREATIVE EUROPE SINGLE PROJECTS GRANTEE 2018

FILMALAP INKUBÁTOR PITCH FÓRUM 2016 (HUNGARIAN NATIONAL FILM FUND )

SHEFFIELD DOC/FEST EDN MARKET MENTORS 2017

FLAMIN NEW APPROACHES 2017