His humor, his gestures, and a few of his lines are known throughout the country. Sometimes we laugh with him, sometimes we cry with him. For decades, millions have identified with him because he expresses something deeply rooted in our shared experiences. The savvy driver in Kenguru, Boldizsár Hecseki in Gyermekrablás a Palánk utcában (Kidnapping at Palánk Street), the inspector in Szépek és bolondok (The Beautiful and the Mad), the voice of the Smooth-Skin in Vuk, the husband in Béla Tarr’s Panelkapcsolat and in Csók, Anyu (Kiss, Mother), Bozodi in Egészséges erotika (Healthy Erotica)— and many other film roles—all speak about us, and speak for us, Hungarians. And when this actor, who understands the audience so well, began directing in the early 1990s—when art films dominated Hungarian cinemas—his efforts were instantly met with success. And not just any success: Sose halunk meg (We Never Die) became a cult classic, and its song, A nagy utazás (The Great Journey), has been hummed by millions ever since. Then came Szamba, A miniszter félrelép (The Minister’s Affair) with András Kern, Ámbár tanár úr, and others. He brought audiences back to the cinema—he made them laugh, sometimes cry, and most importantly: he touched them. Because Róbert Koltai knows exactly this: The audience is never wrong.