Alexander Casse is a video producer and historian from Luzerne, Switzerland, and is in his final year as a history student the University of Bristol. He enjoys producing documentaries, video essays and thought pieces on topics historical and political, and has been honing my video production, graphic design, 3D animation and general animation skills since 2016. 

Hi Alexander, thanks for joining us! What’s the title of your new documentary, and what is it about?

My new documentary is called Understanding Orban: Rhetoric and History. [You can watch it here.]

It’s a political investigation of the manner in which Orban uses history to legitimize and rationalize his policies and rhetoric. It also looks at the ways in which history plays a role in defining Hungarian self-perception and how that has affected their approaches to the past.

How did you become interested in this?

It’s a fairly peculiar and somewhat spontaneous story.

I was reading an Economist article about Viktor Orban’s populist policies and I wondered to what extent Hungary’s history of subjugation and misfortune affected them. I had a theory that the indignation brought upon Hungary as a result of centuries of mistreatment may have had some bearing on why the Hungarian people are so willing to chase what they perceive as greatness in any form.

What is the importance of this topic right now?

A number of European nations have elected populists and far-right governments, including Hungary, Turkey and Poland. Many more are now drifting towards populism: Italy, Austria, Germany, and even my place of birth Switzerland.

What advice would you give to a student interested in this topic?

It’s fairly difficult to decide on a topic in my experience!

Usually, I just have to start working on it to be able to actually commit to it. It may sound clichéd, but you really just have to engage with something until you find yourself regularly working on it.

In terms of video production, if you’re not all too versed in editing then you might want to pursue something like amateur journalism.

What’s the best advice you ever got about history when you were a student?

Again, this might sound obvious, but structure your research and don’t write your essays as you go.

It can leave a lot of holes, inconsistencies and discrepancies. Your argument won’t be as cogent.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve read in the last twelve months?

Probably Nietzsche’s All Too Human – It’s a very interesting, if sometimes impenetrable and arcane book.

What’s your must-do Bristol experience/activity?

Grab a bite to eat at the Burger Joint: it’s a great place for burgers and it has some good vegan options.

What’s next for you?

I’m not quite sure currently.

I’ve played with the idea of completing a master’s in political science or foreign relations, or perhaps even philosophy. However, I’m not quite sure what my results will be so I can’t commit to any one institution currently.