The Romanian event is a must-attend for the Eastern European film industry.
The 23rd Transilvania International Film Festival started on Friday night with a sold-out showing of “Dogman,” a dog-centered revenge thriller by French director Luc Besson. Jojo T. Gibbs, one of the stars of the movie, was there.
Around 3,500 people gathered in Unirii Square in central Bucharest for the start of the 11-day festival, which runs until June 24. This is the biggest film festival in Romania and a top event in Eastern Europe, featuring over 200 films, exhibitions, concerts, talks, and special events. About 1,000 industry professionals are expected to attend.
Among the guests this year is Jojo T. Gibbs, recently seen in Alex Garland’s “Civil War.” Other notable attendees include Italian filmmaker Daniele Luchetti, who will receive a special award for his contribution to world cinema, and Romanian film and theater legend Catrinel Dumitrescu, who will receive an excellence award at the closing gala on June 22.
Twelve films by new directors will compete for the Transilvania Trophy and other awards in the main competition.
“The films in the Official Competition tell stories about unusual characters, their responses to social pressures, and their need for connection, recognition, or independence,” says Mihai Chirilov, the festival’s artistic director. “These films include intimate dramas, absurd comedies, unconventional melodramas, and family stories, often focusing on young people at crossroads.”
This year, the main competition features five European films: the Swedish dramedy “The Hypnosis” by Ernst De Geer, the French romantic drama “The Dreamer” by Anaïs Tellenne, the dark comedy-drama “Where Elephants Go” by Romanian filmmakers Cătălin Rotaru and Gabi Virginia Șarga, the Dutch drama “Summer Brother” by Joren Molter, and the comedy melodrama “The Permanent Picture” by Catalonian filmmaker Laura Ferrés. There are also four films from Asia: “The Old Bachelor” by Iranian director Oktay Baraheni, “Day Tripper” from China by Tanqi Chen, and two Indian films: “The Adaman Girl” by Vinothraj Palani and “Girls Will Be Girls” by Shuchi Talati.
The festival’s documentary competition, “What’s Up, Doc?,” includes ten films: nine European productions and one American film, “The Featherweight” by Robert Kolodny, which tells the true story of Italian-American boxer Willie Pep. Romanian cinema is represented by “Alice On & Off,” directed by Isabela Von Tent.
Some highlights in the sidebar sections include the Danish historical drama “The Promised Land” starring Mads Mikkelsen, Yorgos Lanthimos’s Cannes entry “Kind of Kindness,” which earned Jesse Plemons the best actor award, the horror thriller “Cuckoo” by German director Tilman Singer, the South Korean box-office hit “Exhuma” by Jang Jae-hyun, the German dramedy “Dying” by Mathias Glassner, which won the Silver Bear for best screenplay at this year’s Berlinale, and the queer romantic drama “All of Us Strangers” directed by Andrew Haigh, starring Paul Mescal.