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The cinema of Romania is the art of motion-picture making within the nation of
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
or by
Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...
filmmakers abroad. The history of cinema in Romania dates back to the late 19th century, as early as the
history of film The history of film chronicles the development of a visual art, visual art form created using history of film technology, film technologies that began in the late 19th century. The advent of film as an artistic medium is not clearly defined. Th ...
itself. With the first set of films screened on May 27, 1896, in the building of L'Indépendance Roumanie newspaper in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
. In the Romanian exhibition, a team of
Lumière brothers Lumière is French for 'light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: Buildings * Lumière, a building used by the Bibliothèque publique d'information in Paris, France * Lumiere (skyscraper), a cancelled skyscraper development in Leeds, ...
' employees screened several films, including the famous ''
L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat (translated from French into English as ''The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station'', ''Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat'' Sand ''The Arrival of the Mail Train'', and in the United Kingdom as ''Train Pulling into a Station'') is an 1896 Fren ...
''. The next year, in 1897, the French cameraman Paul Menu (an employee of the
Lumière brothers Lumière is French for 'light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: Buildings * Lumière, a building used by the Bibliothèque publique d'information in Paris, France * Lumiere (skyscraper), a cancelled skyscraper development in Leeds, ...
) shot the first film set in Romania, ''The Royal parade on May 10, 1897''. The first Romanian filmmaker was doctor
Gheorghe Marinescu Gheorghe Marinescu (; 28 February 1863 – 15 May 1938) was a Romanian neurologist, founder of the Romanian School of Neurology. History After attending the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Bucharest, Marinescu received most of his med ...
. He created a series of medically themed short films for the first time in history between 1898 and 1899. Mircea Dumitrescu, ''O privire critică asupra filmului românesc'',
Brașov Brașov (, , ; , also ''Brasau''; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the county seat (i.e. administrative centre) of Brașov County. According to the 2021 Romanian census, ...
, 2005,
The cinema of Romania has been home to many internationally acclaimed films and directors. The first internationally awarded Romanian movie was the 1938 documentary Țara Moților (about Moților Land in the
Apuseni Mountains The Apuseni Mountains (, "Western Mountains"; , "Transylvanian Mountains") are a mountain range in Transylvania, Romania, which belongs to the Western Romanian Carpathians. The highest peak is the Bihor Peak at . The Apuseni Mountains have ab ...
, Romania) directed by Paul Călinescu which received a prize at the 1939 7th Venice International Film Festival. The first Romanian film that won an award from the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
was the 1957
animated Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...
"Scurtă istorie" (A Short History) directed by
Ion Popescu-Gopo Ion Popescu-Gopo (; 1 May 1923 – 29 November 1989) was a Romanian graphic artist and animator, but also writer, film director, and actor. He was born in Bucharest, Romania. He was a prominent personality in the Romanian cinematography and the ...
. The film won the
Short Film Palme d'Or Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known a ...
at the
1957 Cannes Film Festival The 10th Cannes Film Festival took place from 2 to 17 May 1957. French writer André Maurois served as jury president for the main competition, while Dolores del Río was the first female member of the jury for the official selection. The ''P ...
. The first
live-action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games or ...
Romanian film that won an award from the Cannes Film Festival was the 1965 film Forest of the Hanged. The film's director,
Liviu Ciulei Liviu Ciulei (; 7 July 1923 – 24 October 2011) was a Romanian theater and film director, film writer, actor, architect, educator, costume and set designer. During a career spanning over 50 years, he was described by ''Newsweek'' as "one of th ...
won the award for Best Director at the
1965 Cannes Film Festival The 18th Cannes Film Festival took place from 3 to 16 May 1965. Olivia de Havilland served as jury president for the main competition, becoming the first woman to ever do so. The ''Grand Prix du Festival International du Film'', then the fetiv ...
. Romanian cinema achieved wide international recognition in the 2000s with the Romanian New Wave movement that often incorporated a
genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...
of realist and minimalist films that won many awards at European film festivals such as the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
and the
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
.


Actualities (1897-1910)

The history of cinema in Romania started before 1900, pushed by film screenings which helped arouse public curiosity towards the new invention and enthusiastic cameramen began making films out of passion for the newly discovered art. Due to the rudimentary technical conditions, the early films were actualities, very short (many less than one minute) one-shot scenes capturing moments of everyday life. The first cinematographic projection in Romania took place on 27 May 1896, less than five months after the first public film exhibition by the
Lumière brothers Lumière is French for 'light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: Buildings * Lumière, a building used by the Bibliothèque publique d'information in Paris, France * Lumiere (skyscraper), a cancelled skyscraper development in Leeds, ...
on 28 December 1895 in Paris. In the Romanian exhibition, a team of Lumière brothers' employees screened several films, including the famous ''
L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat (translated from French into English as ''The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station'', ''Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat'' Sand ''The Arrival of the Mail Train'', and in the United Kingdom as ''Train Pulling into a Station'') is an 1896 Fren ...
''. The event was arranged by Edwin Schurmann, the
impresario An impresario (from Italian ''impresa'', 'an enterprise or undertaking') is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, Play (theatre), plays, or operas, performing a role in stage arts that is similar to that of a film producer, film or ...
of
Adelina Patti Adelina Patti (19 February 184327 September 1919) was a Spanish-Italian opera singer. At the height of her career, she was earning huge fees performing in the music capitals of Europe and America. She first sang in public as a child in 1851, a ...
and
Eleonora Duse Eleonora Giulia Amalia Duse ( , ; 3 October 185821 April 1924), often known simply as Duse, was an Italian actress, rated by many as the greatest of her time. She performed in many countries, notably in the plays of Gabriele D'Annunzio and Henr ...
,and was hosted by the French-language newspaper ''L'Indépendance Roumanie''. Mișu Văcărescu (descendant of the
boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...
Văcărescu family), a journalist for '' L'Indépendance Roumanie'', noted that "there took place a representation of 'the miracle of the century'". Initially an elite attraction, permanent screenings both in the building of L'Indépendance Roumanie and in other locations (such as the biggest room of the newspaper building on Eforiei Spitalelor Civile Boulevard, then the Hugues room across from the old National Theatre) helped bring the ticket price down and cinema became a popular spectacle in Bucharest. The next year, in 1897, the French cameraman Paul Menu (an employee of the
Lumière brothers Lumière is French for 'light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: Buildings * Lumière, a building used by the Bibliothèque publique d'information in Paris, France * Lumiere (skyscraper), a cancelled skyscraper development in Leeds, ...
) shot the first film set in Romania, ''The Royal parade on 10 May 1897'', showing
King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
Carol I Carol I or Charles I of Romania (born Karl Eitel Friedrich Zephyrinus Ludwig von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen; 20 April 1839 – ), was the monarch of Romania from 1866 to his death in 1914, ruling as Prince (''Domnitor'') from 1866 to 1881, and as ...
mounted, taking his place on the boulevard to head the parade. He continued by filming other 16 news items over the following two months, but only two survive today as nr. 551 and 552 in the Lumière catalogue. Menu's first Romanian films were presented on 8 June/23 June 1897, including images of the floods at
Galați Galați ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names) is the capital city of Galați County in the historical region of Western Moldavia, in eastern Romania. Galați is a port town on the river Danube. and the sixth-larges ...
, Romanian Navy vessels on the
Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
, and scenes from the Băneasa Hippodrome.ANF
Starting in 1906, in
Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...
, the Aromanian Manakia brothers made a career with their social and ethnographic themed actualities. Film screenings resumed in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
in 1905 at various locations, as the Edison, the Eforie, the Lyric Theatre, and Circul Sidoli. In May 1909, the first theater in Romania built especially for exhibiting films, Volta, was opened on Doamnei Street in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
.
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
, then part of
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
, had already had its first movie theatre in
Brașov Brașov (, , ; , also ''Brasau''; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the county seat (i.e. administrative centre) of Brașov County. According to the 2021 Romanian census, ...
since 1901. Volta was followed starting with the next year by others, such as Bleriot on Sărindar Street, Bristol, Apollo and Venus. The programs consisted of actualities and short "little films with actors" (for example, a five-minute shot of
Victor Eftimiu Victor Eftimiu (; 24 January 1889 – 27 November 1972) was a Romanian poet and playwright. He was a contributor to ''Sburătorul'', a Romanian literary magazine. His works have been performed in the State Jewish Theater of Romania. Eftimi ...
and Aristizza Romanescu during a stately walk on the seashore). The films gradually increased in running time, eventually developing into newsreels and fiction films.


First scientific films in history (1898-1899)

By 1898, public interest in cinema started fading, so Paul Menu offered his camera for sale. The camera was bought by doctor
Gheorghe Marinescu Gheorghe Marinescu (; 28 February 1863 – 15 May 1938) was a Romanian neurologist, founder of the Romanian School of Neurology. History After attending the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Bucharest, Marinescu received most of his med ...
who became the first Romanian filmmaker, realizing a series of short medically themed films for the first time in history between 1898 and 1899. Gheorghe Marinescu, together with cameraman Constantin M. Popescu, made in 1898 the first scientific film in the world, ''Walking difficulties in organic
hemiplegia Hemiparesis, also called unilateral paresis, is the weakness of one entire side of the body ('' hemi-'' means "half"). Hemiplegia, in its most severe form, is the complete paralysis of one entire side of the body. Either hemiparesis or hemiplegia ...
''. In a letter to doctor Marinescu from 29 July 1924, speaking about these films,
Auguste Lumière Auguste Marie Louis Nicolas Lumière (; 19 October 1862 – 10 April 1954) was a French engineer, industrialist, biologist, and illusionist. In 1894 and 1895, he and his brother Louis Lumière, Louis invented an animated photographic camera a ...
wrote: "I've seen your scientific reports about the usage of cinematograph in studies of nervous illnesses, when I was still receiving ''La Semaine Médicale''. Unfortunately, not many scientists have followed your way."Ţuţui, Marian,
A short history of the Romanian films
'' at the Romanian National Cinematographic Center.
His films were considered lost until 1975, when a TV reporter named Cornel Rusu discovered them in a metal cabinet in a hospital bearing the famous doctor's name.


First Romanian silent era films (1911-1920)

An investigation regarding the beginnings of non-actualities Romanian fiction films, published in an insert of the newspaper ''
Cuvântul ''Cuvântul'' (, meaning "The Word") was a daily newspaper, published by philosopher Nae Ionescu in Bucharest, Romania, from 1926 to 1934, and again in 1938. It was primarily noted for progressively adopting a far-right and fascist agenda, an ...
'' (''The Word'') in December 1933, mentions that in 1911 an "arrangement of a play for the cinema", ''Păpușa'' (''The Doll''), was produced by the cameramen Nicolae Barbelian and Demichelli in collaboration with the head of the actors' troupe, Marinescu. At the same time,
Victor Eftimiu Victor Eftimiu (; 24 January 1889 – 27 November 1972) was a Romanian poet and playwright. He was a contributor to ''Sburătorul'', a Romanian literary magazine. His works have been performed in the State Jewish Theater of Romania. Eftimi ...
, in collaboration with Emil Gârleanu, wrote a film script which they offered for free to a certain Georgescu. The resultant film, called ''Dragoste la mănăstire'' (''Love in a Monastery'') or ''Două altare'' (''Two Altars'') and shown only in 1914, played for just eight days. This was despite the fact that the film was composed merely of shots taken during two rehearsals for the role, attended by Tony Bulandra and Marioara Voiculescu, the rest of the film being taken up by intertitles and long letters. The first Romanian fiction film was ''Amor Fatal'' (''Fatal Love Affair''), starring Lucia Sturdza, Tony Bulandra and Aurel Barbelian, actors from the
National Theatre Bucharest The National Theatre Bucharest () is one of the national theatres of Romania, located in the capital city of Bucharest. Founding It was founded as the ''Teatrul cel Mare din București'' ("Grand Theatre of Bucharest") in 1852, its first director ...
. The film was directed by Grigore Brezeanu, a director from the same theatre and the son of the great actor
Ion Brezeanu Ion or Iancu Brezeanu (December 1, 1869–March 17, 1940) was a Romanian stage actor. His jovial figure made Brezeanu ideal for comedic roles, above all in the works of Ion Luca Caragiale, whose favorite he was. In 1888, while still a student ...
. The film played between 26 and 30 September 1911 at the Apollo Cinema. On 7 November 1911, the film ''Înșirăte mărgărite...'' (''Spread Yourselves, Daisies'') premiered. It was based on
Victor Eftimiu Victor Eftimiu (; 24 January 1889 – 27 November 1972) was a Romanian poet and playwright. He was a contributor to ''Sburătorul'', a Romanian literary magazine. His works have been performed in the State Jewish Theater of Romania. Eftimi ...
's poem, and in fact showed scenes filmed in different locations in the country for the completion of the play with the same name that was playing at the
National Theatre Bucharest The National Theatre Bucharest () is one of the national theatres of Romania, located in the capital city of Bucharest. Founding It was founded as the ''Teatrul cel Mare din București'' ("Grand Theatre of Bucharest") in 1852, its first director ...
; it was what today would be called a
magic lantern The magic lantern, also known by its Latin name , is an early type of image projector that uses pictures—paintings, prints, or photographs—on transparent plates (usually made of glass), one or more lens (optics), lenses, and a light source. ...
show. Aristide Demetriade and Grigore Brezeanu directed. Aristide Demetriade appeared in the role of
Făt-Frumos Făt-Frumos (from Romanian language, Romanian ''făt'': son, infant; ''frumos'': handsome) is a knight hero in Romanian folklore, as exemplified in the fairy tale ''Făt-Frumos with the Golden Hair''. Făt-Frumos has to go through tests and ob ...
. This film/theatre hybrid was well received by spectators of the day. In December 1911, the theatrical magazine ''Rampa'' published a note under the heading "The Cinema in the Theatre" (signed by V. Scânteie) indicating that "The Maestro Nottara is in the course of making a patriotic work re-creating the Romanian War of Independence on film, so that today's generations might learn the story of the battles of 1877, and for future generations a live tableau of Romanian bravery will remain". As a result, the director of the
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
branch of the Gaumont-Paris studio, Raymond Pellerin, announced the premiere of his film ''Războiul din 1877-1878'' (''The 1877–1878 War''), scheduled for 29 December 1911. A "film" made in haste, with a troupe of second-hand actors and with the help of General Constantinescu, who commanded a division at
Pitești Pitești () is a city in Romania, located on the river Argeș (river), Argeș. The capital and largest city of Argeș County, it is an important commercial and industrial center, as well as the home of two universities. Pitești is situated in th ...
, from whom he had obtained the extras needed for the war scenes, ''"Războiul din 1877-1878"'' was screened a day before by the prefect of the capital's police, who decided that it did not correspond with historic fact. Consequently, the film was confiscated and destroyed, Raymond Pellerin was declared ''persona non grata'' and he left for Paris, while the "collaborationist" general saw himself moved to another garrison as a means of discipline. On 5 May 1912, the magazine ''Flacăra'' (''The Flame'') brought to its readers' attention the fact that "as it is known, a few artists have founded a society with the goal of producing a film about the
War of Independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
... Such an undertaking deserves to be applauded". The initiators were a group of actors: Constantin Nottara, Aristide Demetriade, V. Toneanu, Ion Brezeanu, N. Soreanu, P. Liciu, as well as the young Grigore Brezeanu, associate producer and the creative force behind the whole operation. Since a large amount of money was needed for the production, they also brought into this effort Leon Popescu, a wealthy man and owner of the Lyric Theatre. The group received strong backing from government authorities, with the army and all necessary equipment being placed at its disposal, plus military advisers (possibly including Pascal Vidrașcu). The cameras and their operators were brought from abroad, and the print was prepared in Parisian laboratories. Could Grigore Brezeanu have been the film's director? No source from that time gives credence to such a hypothesis. On the contrary, they present him as "initiator", producer of the film, beside members of the National Theatre and Leon Popescu. Furthermore, it appears that it was he who attracted the financier of the entire undertaking. In 1985, the film critic Tudor Caranfil discovered among Aristide Demetriade's papers his director's notebooks for ''Independența României'', unequivocally confirming that he was the film's director. Thus, the film's production crew was as follows: Producers: Leon Popescu, Aristide Demetriade, Grigore Brezeanu, Constantin Nottara, Pascal Vidrașcu. Screenwriters: Petre Liciu, Constantin Nottara, Aristide Demetriade, Corneliu Moldoveanu. Director: Aristide Demetriade. Cinematographer: Franck Daniau. Makeup and hairstylist: Pepi Machauer. On 2 September 1912, at the Eforie cinema, the largest movie theatre in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
, the premiere of ''
Independența României ''Independenţa României'' ("The Independence of Romania"), subtitled ''The Romanian-Russo-Turkish War 1877'', is a Romanian 1912 silent film directed by Aristide Demetriade. Beginnings In December 1911, the theatrical magazine ''Rampa'' pub ...
'' took place. Despite all its shortcomings as the theatrical game of the actors, the errors of an army of extras uncontrolled by direction which provoked unintended laughter in some scenes and rendered dramatically limp those of the beginning, the film was well received by spectators, being shown for several weeks. Through this realization, through the dimensions of its theme, through the distribution method chosen, through the genuine artistic intentions, through its professional editing (for the time), the creation of this film can be considered Romania's first step in the art of cinematography. And yet he who had realized this work, the man who kept the whole team together, the theatre director Grigore Brezeanu, was left disappointed. The press of the time made ostentatious mention of Leon Popescu, who financed the film and made sure to distance the other financiers, buying their part; no such praise was heaped on the artistic makers of the film. This caused producer Grigore Brezeanu to say in an interview given to the magazine "Rampa" and published on 13 April 1913: "My dream would have been to build a large film studio. I have come to believe that this is impossible. First of all, we are missing a large capital investment. Without money we cannot rival the foreign studios...A studio, according to our financiers, is something outside art, something in the realm of agriculture or the C.F.R. Hence I have abandoned this dream with great regret." But Leon Popescu — after the appearance of certain products allegedly of the Romanian cinema, filmed by the Pathe-Frères studio and featuring second-hand actors; in fact, these were a mixture of foreign films with scenes shot in which Romanian actors appeared (they were presented on the stages of movie theatres, in the form of theatre productions played by actors "in flesh and blood" coupled with filmed scenes of the same actors), known as "cinemasketches" — responded with a wide-ranging offensive plan, forming the ''Film de artă Leon Popescu'' (''Leon Popescu Art Film'') society in 1913. Collaborating with the troupe of Marioara Voiculescu, which included actors sympathetic to Popescu (C. Radovici, Ion Manolescu and G. Storin), they managed to put on the market the following films: ''Amorul unei prințese'' ('' The Love Affair of a Princess'') (1913), ''Răzbunarea'' (''
Revenge Revenge is defined as committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Vengeful forms of justice, such as primitive justice or retributive justice, are often differentiated from more fo ...
'') (1913), ''Urgia cerească'' ('' The Sky-borne Disaster'') (1913), ''Cetatea Neamțului'' ('' The Neamț Citadel'') (1914), ''Spionul'' ('' The Spy'') (1914), with all but the penultimate proving to be well below expectations. Notably, in 1913, there appeared another Romanian film, ''Oțelul răzbună'' ('' Steel Takes Its Revenge''), directed by Aristide Demetriade - who that same year directed another film: ''Scheci cu Jack Bill'' ('' Sketch with Jack Bill''). The film was financed by the director, with substantial help from Professor Gheorghe Arion (8,000 lei). The 40-minute film received favorable reviews and enjoyed great success. Today only one reel remains at the A.N.F., taking up a minute of projection time; happily, all the actors can be seen in close-up. The film's producer was Gheorghe Arion; its director and editor was Aristide Demetriade; Franck Daniau was the cinematographer, and it starred Aristide Demetriade, Andrei Popovici, Mărioara Cinsky, Țacovici-Cosmin,
Nicolae Grigorescu Nicolae Grigorescu (; 15 May 1838 – 21 July 1907) was one of the founders of modern Romanian painting. He is considered by Romanians the greatest Romanian painter, and one of the founders of modern Romanian art. He is most known for paintin ...
, Petre Bulandra, and Romald Bulfinsky. At the end of 1914, the Leon Popescu Society merged with the Cipeto society with the aim of importing small-sized projectors and at the same time of renting films produced by the Marioara Voiculescu company to third parties. During the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, film production was mainly directed toward documentaries and newsreels. The few Romanian cameramen were mobilized, and during the retreat to Moldova all film cameras in the country were saved. His Majesty Ferdinand I was filmed on the front, together with the generals Constantin Prezan and
Alexandru Averescu Alexandru Averescu (; 9 March 1859 – 2 October 1938) was a Romanian marshal, diplomat and Populism, populist politician. A Romanian Armed Forces Commander during World War I, he served as List of Prime Ministers of Romania, Prime Minister of thr ...
, while Queen Marie was filmed in hospitals, easing the suffering of patients. Few sequences remain of the thousands of metres filmed. Some of these were later used in the film ', produced in 1930. After World War I, internationally, film production developed in accordance with the interest of businessmen in the new industry. New studios endowed with good equipment and specialists well trained in the new technology appeared, directors and actors known to the public at large were attracted to work in the new industry, as were renowned screenwriters. Markets were opened for finished film products, which through a market-tested formula managed to bring profits and finance new productions. Film industries with lavish financial resources came to dominate the market, decimating national cinemas. To all these were added two other catastrophes: Leon Popescu died in 1918, after which his studio on the grounds of the Lyric Theatre burned down. Miraculously, of all the films, only one was saved: a copy of ''
Independența României ''Independenţa României'' ("The Independence of Romania"), subtitled ''The Romanian-Russo-Turkish War 1877'', is a Romanian 1912 silent film directed by Aristide Demetriade. Beginnings In December 1911, the theatrical magazine ''Rampa'' pub ...
'' (this being incomplete, with about 20 minutes missing). According to other versions of the story told at the time, suffering from a crisis of nerves brought about by his films' failures, Leon Popescu set fire to his own storehouse of films and died shortly thereafter. In 1920, a film studio, ''Soarele'' (''The Sun''), began producing ''Pe valurile fericirii'' ('' On the Waves of Happiness''), which starred the Hungarian actress
Lya De Putti Lya de Putti (born Amália Helena Mária Róza Putti; , 10 January 1896 – 27 November 1931) was a Hungarian film actress during the silent film, silent era. She was noted for her portrayals of vamp (woman), vamp characters. Early life and care ...
, and the Romanian actors
Maria Filotti Maria Filotti (9 October 1883, Batogu, Brăila, Batogu, Brăila County, Romania – 5 November 1956, Bucharest, Romania) was a Romanian actress . She was described as one of the "prestigious actors of the great realistic school" and the "directres ...
, Ion Manolescu, Gheorghe Storin, Alexandre Mihalesco, and Tantzi Cutava-Barozzi. It was directed by Dolly A. Sigetti and the script was based on a play by K. Williamson. The film was never completed. Nevertheless, a few sequences were shown in the form of a trailer.


First Romanian animated film (1920)

The year 1920 marked the production of the first Romanian
animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...
, more precisely of the first Romanian
animated cartoon Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...
, conceived by Aurel Petrescu and called ''Păcală în lună'' ('' Păcală on the moon''). Surprisingly, all the animated films of this director and artist, which he was producing into the sound era, are lost. Showing foresight, Aurel Petrescu created an album with about 80 stills, today owned by the A.N.F ( Arhiva Națională de Filme, in English: National Movie Archive) and from which we can get an idea of the techniques used by Petrescu in animating. Some stills have on their edge the black strip denoting recorded sound, which has led researchers to confirm that in his last phase, Petrescu produced sound cartoons.


Romanian silent era films (1921-1930)

Jean Mihail was one of the pioneers of Romanian cinema. He began his career through his participation as assistant director under the German Alfred Hallm, director of ''Țigăncușa din iatac'' ('' The Gypsy Girl in the Bedroom''). The film, shot on locations such as
Mogoșoaia Palace Mogoșoaia Palace (, ) is situated about from Bucharest, Romania. It was built between 1698 and 1702 by Constantin Brâncoveanu in what is called the Romanian Renaissance style or Brâncovenesc style. The palace bears the name of the widow of t ...
, Pasărea Monastery, and Minovici Vila, was based on a script by Victor Beldiman, in turn written after a novel by Radu Rosseti. It was a Spera-Film Berlin and Rador-Film Bucharest co-production. It starred Dorina Heller, Elvira Popescu, Ion Iancovescu, Mitzi Vecera, Tantzi Elvas, Ecaterina Vigny, Leon Lefter, Petre Sturdza, Petrescu Muscă and premiered on 30 December 1923. The film is lost today. The young actor-director
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
found an investor in the year 1925 who invested his savings in the production of a film called ''Năbădăile Cleopatrei'' ('' Cleopatra's Caprices''). Ion Șahighian made his directing debut on this film, which starred
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
, Ion Finteșteanu, A. Pop Marțian, Alexandru Giugaru, N. Soreanu, Brândușa Grozăvescu and others. It premiered on 5 October 1925 at the Lux theatre. In the same fashion,
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
produced the film ''Milionar pentru o zi'' ('' Millionaire for a Day'') (1925) in a Bucharest cabaret, since the owner wanted to advertise the building. Jean Mihail directed '' Lia'' (1927), on a screenplay by Mircea Filotti financed by a German businessman who wanted to fulfill the wish of his wife, well-known actress Lilly Flohr. Likewise, he made ''Povara'' ('' The Burden'') at
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
in 1928 with the money of a lady who wished to see her name listed in the credits as production director. At the request of a firm that sold coffee, radios, etc., Marcel Blossoms and Micu Kellerman directed the film ''Lache în harem'' (1927) ('' The valet in the harem''). On other occasions, due to lack of money, film enthusiasts would form a cooperative: one would contribute the camera, the other the laboratory, the other the script, the other the direction; the actors were easily obtained due to their desire to see themselves on screen, and finally they had to find a creditor willing to lend them some money on the assurance that it would be returned to him after "the great success of the premiere". This is how there appeared under Jean Mihail's direction ''Păcat'' (''
Sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...
'') (1924) and ''Manasse'' (''
Manasseh Manasseh () is both a given name and a surname. Its variants include Manasses and Manasse. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Ezekiel Saleh Manasseh (died 1944), Singaporean rice and opium merchant and hotelier * Jacob Manasseh ( ...
'') (1925). The actor
Ghiță Popescu Ghiță is a Romanian diminutive of Gheorghe, and may refer to: *Ghiță Licu (1945 – 2014), Romanian handball player * Ghiță Moscu (1889 – 1937), Romanian socialist and communist activist * Ghiță Mureșan (born 1971), Romanian-American ...
directed ''Legenda celor două cruci'' ('' The Legend of the Two Crosses'') (1925), ''Vitejii neamului'' ('' The Bravest of Our People'') (1926) and ''Năpasta'' ('' The Calamity'') (1927).
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
directed ''Maiorul Mura'' ('' Major Mura'') (1928), financed by collecting money from friends. The attraction of the screen and the real desire to make a name for oneself in the new art led to the foundation of several film schools. Students' tuition fees paid for the production of certain films. Of course, the students were unpaid actors, which allowed for widespread distribution. The Clipa-Film studio produced, with this form of financing, the films ''IadeÈ™'' ('' The Wishbone'') (1926), ''
Iancu Jianu Iancu Jianu (; 1787 – 14 December 1842), also Ioniță Jianu, was a Wallachian Romanian hajduk. Biography Born in Caracal, Oltenia, Wallachia, in 1787, to the Jianu boyar family, as the youngest of four brothers. His father, Costache Jianu, w ...
'' (1927), ''Haiducii'' (''The Haiducs'') (1929), ''Ciocoii'' (''The
Boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...
s'') (1930) and, later, ''Insula Șerpilor'' ('' Snake Island'') (1934), the penultimate one featuring an attempt at sound, and the last one being a talkie. On the other hand, a film production society called '' Soremar'', generally specializing in
documentaries A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". The American author and media analyst Bill ...
and
newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news, news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a Movie theater, cinema, newsreels were a source of cu ...
s, produced the 1928 film ''Simfonia dragostei'' ('' The Symphony of Love''), directed by Ion Șahighian. With the director Niculescu Brumă they produced the film ''
Ecaterina Teodoroiu Ecaterina Teodoroiu (; formal rendition of Cătălina Toderoiu; 14 January 1894 – 3 September 1917) was a Romanians, Romanian woman who fought on the front and died in World War I, and is regarded as a heroine of Romania. A Cercetaşii Românie ...
'', in which there appear clips filmed during the First World War of the great personages of the time; the mother of
Ecaterina Teodoroiu Ecaterina Teodoroiu (; formal rendition of Cătălina Toderoiu; 14 January 1894 – 3 September 1917) was a Romanians, Romanian woman who fought on the front and died in World War I, and is regarded as a heroine of Romania. A Cercetaşii Românie ...
appeared as herself. These films were produced in Vienna studios. Other films from this period include ''Gogulică C.F.R.'' (1929) (unfinished), and ''Haplea'' ('' The Dullard'') (animated by Marin Iorda in 1928) - the first Romanian animated film preserved archivally. From a technical point of view, making these films was very difficult. If a film camera could be obtained from newsreel photographers, the print was prepared with them also. The problem of finding a set to use was very difficult, with the director searching for a set among all nearby warehouses, granaries, stables or dance halls. Sometimes filming was done in different apartments or in homes owned by those willing to help. Lights were usually gathered up from photographers' studios. Often, due to overcrowding in residences, films would accidentally display a light or the cameraman and his camera reflected in a mirror or a piece of furniture. The best locations were those offered by various theatres on occasion that work take place at night. Another solution was for them to shoot interiors outdoors. They built their "interiors" on sets exposed to sunlight (thus eliminating artificial lights) and built on a platform that could be rotated and thus make full use of sunlight. The technical crews, in contrast to those found abroad, had to be jacks-of-all-trades, yet ultimately workmen: the cameraman would also prepare the print in the laboratory, the director might be a make-up artist as well, the producer a prop-man, an actor an assistant director. As for distribution, this depended on the actors' willingness to work for free. To all this was added the fact that negatives were scarce, meaning that sequences were filmed in one take only, regardless of the quality of the outcome. Even if the conditions in which these people worked and created did not allow them to reach a level equal to wider contemporary standards on a technical level, they still managed to record a pretty page in the annals of Romanian film history, despite all the inherent artistic lapses at the beginning. On the other hand, the intellectuals of the day still considered cinematographic art to be a lowly sideshow, not according it its due importance. It is true that the specialty press was also rather thin on content and sometimes uninspired. In 1928
Tudor Vianu Tudor Vianu (; January 8, 1898 – May 21, 1964) was a Romanian literary criticism, literary critic, art critic, poet, philosopher, academic, and translation, translator. He had a major role on the reception and development of Modernism in Liter ...
wrote in the article "The Movie Theatre and the Radio Broadcaster in the Politics of Culture": "The cinematic press ascreated first of all in order to sustain the interests of cinematographic capitalism...There is no actor, no matter how mediocre, not to have been proclaimed a first-rate star by the cinematic press and there is no film, no matter how boring or mundane, not to have been declared an incomparable achievement". At the end of the 1920s and beginning of the 1930s, cinema entered the consciousness of certain Romanian writers and cultural figures, such as Tudor Vianu,
Liviu Rebreanu Liviu Rebreanu (; November 27, 1885 – September 1, 1944) was a Romanian novelist, playwright, short story writer, and journalist. Life Born in Felsőilosva (now Târlișua, Bistrița-Năsăud County, Transylvania), then part of the King ...
,
Victor Eftimiu Victor Eftimiu (; 24 January 1889 – 27 November 1972) was a Romanian poet and playwright. He was a contributor to ''Sburătorul'', a Romanian literary magazine. His works have been performed in the State Jewish Theater of Romania. Eftimi ...
,
Camil Petrescu Camil Petrescu (; 9/21 April 1894 – 14 May 1957) was a Romanian playwright, novelist, philosopher and poet. He marked the end of the traditional novel era and laid the foundation of the modern novel era in Romania. He was a member of the Sbur ...
and
Dimitrie Gusti Dimitrie Gusti (; 13 February 1880 – 30 October 1955) was a Romanian sociologist, ethnologist, historian, and voluntarist philosopher; a professor at the University of Iași and the University of Bucharest, he served as Romania's Minister ...
, who all became aware of this new mode of expression and culture. As Rebreanu observed in 1930, In this period the film critic D. I. Suchianu made his debut, first in newspapers, then in 1929 in radio. Later on the critic Ion Filotti Cantacuzino also started broadcasting. The Romanian poet and aristocract
Elena Văcărescu Elena Văcărescu, or Hélène Vacaresco (September 21, 1864 in Bucharest – February 17, 1947 in Paris), was a Romanian- French aristocrat writer, twice a laureate of the Académie Française. Life Through her father, Ioan Văcărescu, she d ...
said in 1930 about the importance of the cinematic art: "Having great power at its disposal, the cinema should work hard...toward the greatest good of peoples and what brings them together, that is, toward ''peace''".


Romanian sound era films (1930-1947)

The appearance of
sound film A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...
s opened a new stage in the development of world cinema, by implication in the cinema of Romania as well. The appearance of sound further complicated the tricky problem of the technical-material base, both in terms of production and of projection in theatres. From 1930 until 1939, only 16 films were produced. The majority were "Romanian versions" of foreign films produced in Paris,
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
or
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
studios with a few Romanian technicians and some Romanian actors. . Among these were the Franco-American film ''Parada Paramount'' (''
Paramount on Parade ''Paramount on Parade'' is a 1930 all-star American pre-Code revue released by Paramount Pictures, directed by several directors including Edmund Goulding, Dorothy Arzner, Ernst Lubitsch, Rowland V. Lee, A. Edward Sutherland, Lothar Mendes, Ott ...
''), ''Televiziune'' (''
Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
'') (both 1931 and dubbed in Paris) (with George Vraca's voice in the second film), ''Fum'' (''
Smoke Smoke is an aerosol (a suspension of airborne particulates and gases) emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwante ...
'') 1931, ''Trenul fantomă'' ('' The Phantom Train'') 1933, ''Prima dragoste'' ('' First Love'') and ''Suflete în furtună'' ('' Tempest-tossed Souls'') 1934, Hungarian films dubbed in
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
. The German director Martin Berger, who in 1929 had directed the silent film (among the last Romanian silent films) ''Venea o moară pe Siret'' ('' A Mill Was Coming down the Siret'') through an official subsidy, came back and in 1930 directed a film based on the novel by
Liviu Rebreanu Liviu Rebreanu (; November 27, 1885 – September 1, 1944) was a Romanian novelist, playwright, short story writer, and journalist. Life Born in Felsőilosva (now Târlișua, Bistrița-Năsăud County, Transylvania), then part of the King ...
with the same name, ''
Ciuleandra ''Ciuleandra'' is a 1985 Romanian drama film directed by Sergiu Nicolaescu. The film was selected as the Romanian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 58th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.Margaret Herrick Library, ...
''. This was the first Romanian talking film. The film was an artistic fiasco because the famous German actors provoked laughter through the German accent they had when speaking Romanian. Even the few Romanian actors who appeared in the film spoke strangely, as the German producers, being unused to the cadence of the
Romanian language Romanian (obsolete spelling: Roumanian; , or , ) is the official and main language of Romania and Moldova. Romanian is part of the Eastern Romance languages, Eastern Romance sub-branch of Romance languages, a linguistic group that evolved fr ...
, imposed a diction of phrases with long pauses. Hence, in one scene, the son climbed down a staircase saying one word on each step: "How... are... you... father?". The reply sounds the same: "Fine... dear..."! The year 1932 brought the production ''Visul lui Tănase'' ('' Tănase's Dream'') to Romanian screens. It was self-produced in Berlin by
Constantin Tănase Constantin Tănase (; 5 July 1880 – 29 August 1945) was a Romanian actor and writer for stage, a key figure in the revue style of theater in Romania. Life He was born into a working-class family living in a peasant house in Vaslui, Roma ...
. He was the film's financier, screenwriter, and its principal star alongside several good Romanian actors, while the German side provided the studio, direction, technicians, and a troupe of actors. The great comedians of the inter-war Romanian stage, , managed, with the help of a Romanian engineer, Argani, who had put together a sound device, to produce the only entirely domestic film of the period, titled '' Bing-Bang'' (1934). As film posters noted, it was a "humorous musical" based on a script by Argani, Stroe, and Vasilache; with camerawork by I. Bartok; music by N. Stroe and Vasile Vasilache; musical arrangements by
Mihai Constantinescu Mihai Constantinescu (; born 20 August 1932) is a Romanian film director and screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenw ...
and Max Halm; and starring N. Stroe, Vasile Vasilache, Nora Piacenti, Grigore Vasiliu Birlic, Titi Botez, C. Calmuschi, Silly Vasiliu, Nutzi Pantazi, Lucica Părvulescu, Richard Rang, Alexandru Brunetti, and Alexandru Giovani. Its premiere took place on 7 February 1935 at the Arpa Cinema, inside the Bucharest Military Circle. Enthusiastic Romanian directors, due to lack of funds and disinterest on the part of the ruling authorities, all began to take other paths in their lives.
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
left for Paris, where he added sound to his 1934 film, ''State la București'' ('' States in Bucharest'') in the Gaumont Studio; the film had originally been made as a silent comedy. Ion Șahighian left cinema for the theatre. Eftimie Vasilescu worked as a newsreel photographer. Only Jean Mihail remained a director based in Romania, though he too had to do work abroad, participating in the dubbing of films at Hunnia Film Studio in Budapest and
Barrandov Studios Barrandov Studios is a set of film studios in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the largest film studio in the country and one of the largest in Europe. Barrandov has made several major Hollywood productions, including ''Mission: Impossible (film), ...
in
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''ÄŒesko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
. During this nadir of Romanian cinema a ray of hope appeared. Politicians, and not only in Romania, realized the great influential power that cinema had as part of the mass media. Cinema could be used for purposes of propaganda, for influencing the masses at large with different levels of culture. (Even
Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...
, realizing the propaganda power of film, said: "Of all the arts, the most important for us is cinema". Hence, film could be used as an important ideological weapon and the Communists needed it in their "great work" of destroying democracies). Furthermore, it had been proven that the tenacious work of Romanian film directors, despite all its imperfections, had been well received by the public, and had begun to prove right those who kept calling for subsidies toward the production of Romanian films. Thus, at the beginning of 1934, a law was passed establishing a National Cinema Fund. This was funded through a tax of 1 leu per ticket and 10 lei per meter of imported film. Its stated purpose was to create a material base for Romanian film production (studios, laboratories, equipment, etc.) and, as subsequent revenue came in, to finance productions as well. The fund's administration was placed in the hands of a committee formed by Professor Tudor Vianu, Professor Alexandru Rosetti and the writer Ion Marin Sadoveanu. These taxes provoked strong protests from film importers and movie theatre owners, yet with the authorities not yielding, tempers soon relaxed. Following the passage of this law, Romanian cinéastes began a flurry of activity, planning all sorts of projects. An entrepreneur brought in a ''Bell-Howel'' sound recorder and founded a company called The Romanian Sound Film Industry, commencing with the production of
newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news, news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a Movie theater, cinema, newsreels were a source of cu ...
s. Together with Jean Mihail he began the production of a documentary film, ''România'' (''Romania''). Through the contribution of a private entrepreneur, Tudor Posmantir, a laboratory named Ciro-film was built in 1936–1937, equipped with Debrie devices. This was a modern laboratory for developing and copying films, thus assuring that modern work techniques would be used. A "
film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company that makes films. Today, studios are mostly financing and distribution entities. In addition, they may have their own studio facility or facilities; how ...
" was also built nearby–this was in fact a large wooden hangar, but rather good for producing films. It was here that Ion Șahighian filmed ''O noapte de pomină'' ('' An Unforgettable Night''), from a script by Tudor MuÈ™atescu, starring George Timică and Dina Cocea, in 1939. The film found great success with audiences and received a favorable critical reception. Thus it was shown what good technical equipment could do for the industry. Through various governments' decisions, the National Cinema Fund was placed within the Tourism Office, where a cinema section had been established for creating travelogues. The material base created was that initially stated as the project's goal and indeed of good quality. The film cameras were of the newsreel type, with portable sound equipment set up in an automobile; work was soon finished on a sound recording room for documentaries, with minimal artificial lights in the studio. This all disappointed the creators of artistic films, as they lacked suitable sets for filming. Also in this period at the end of the 1930s, ''Oficiul NaÈ›ional Cinematografic'' (ONC, the National Cinematographic Office) was formed, headed by the film critic D. I. Suchianu. In the beginning the office worked on a periodic newsreel program and on documentary production. Construction was also begun on a studio and completed with difficulty due to the start of World War II. The ONC produced the documentary ''Èšara MoÈ›ilor ( MoÈ›ilor Land)'', which received a prize at the 1938
Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
. The film was directed by Paul Călinescu and marked the entry of the Romanian documentary into the realm of cinematic art. During the war, the ONC was placed at the disposal of the Army General Staff, the majority of cameramen being sent to the front, and technicians being employed exclusively for the needs of wartime propaganda. Despite all these difficulties, the film ''O noapte furtunoasă'' ('' A Stormy Night'') was completed between 1941 and 1942 in the ONC "studio". Producing the film under wartime conditions was a labor fit for
Sisyphus In Greek mythology, Sisyphus or Sisyphos (; Ancient Greek: Σίσυφος ''Sísyphos'') was the founder and king of Ancient Corinth, Ephyra (now known as Corinth). He reveals Zeus's abduction of Aegina (mythology), Aegina to the river god As ...
, equally for the actors, cameraman, stage electricians, script-girl, stage designers and prop handlers. All the exteriors had to be constructed in the small 18×11 m studio, intended for music recording, since exterior shooting at night was impossible due to the need to maintain camouflage. For panoramic or travelling shots, two or three scenes had to be shot on a stage that had to be decorated two or three times over, and then combined in order to constitute a whole shot. The way this worked in practice was that once a scene was filmed, the set was taken down and the next design thrown up. Only one thing was not lacking for them: photographic material. In the end, 29,000 m were shot. The film ''O noapte furtunoasă'' was directed by
Jean Georgescu Jean Georgescu (25 February 1904 – 8 April 1994) was a Romanian film director, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Bucharest, Romania (where he also died), he was most notable for directing films including '' In Our Village'' (1951, in collaborati ...
, based on the eponymous comedy by
Ion Luca Caragiale Ion Luca Caragiale (; According to his birth certificate, published and discussed by Constantin Popescu-Cadem in ''Manuscriptum'', Vol. VIII, Nr. 2, 1977, pp. 179–184 – 9 June 1912), commonly referred to as I. L. Caragiale, was a Romanians, ...
; the assistant directors were Ionel Iliescu, Virgil Stoenescu, I. Marinescu, and P. Băleanu; the cameraman was Gerard Perrin (from Paris); the sound engineers were A. Bielisici, V. Cantunari, and G. Mărăi; editing was done by Ivonne Hérault (from Paris) and Lucia Anton; makeup by the Sturh couple (of Berlin); choreography by Emil Bobescu; music by
Paul Constantinescu Paul Constantinescu (; 30 June 1909, Ploiești – 20 December 1963) was a Romanian composer. Two of his main influences are Romanian folk music and Byzantine chant, both of which he used in his teaching. One of his students was composer Margar ...
; set design by Ștefan Norris; storyboards and costumes by Aurel Jiquidi; and production direction by Ion Cantacuzino. The film starred Alexandru Giugaru, Maria Maximilian, Florica Demion, Radu Beligan, Iordănescu Bruno, George Demetru, Ion Baroi,
George Ciprian George Ciprian (; born Gheorghe Pană Constantin ; June 7, 1883 – 8 May 1968) was a Romanian actor and playwright. His writings make him a precursor of the Theatre of the Absurd. Biography Born in Buzău to a Greeks in Romania, Greek baker's ...
, Miluță Ghiorghiu, Leontina Ioanid, Doina Missir, Iuliana Sym, Cornelia Teodosiu, Elena Bulandra, Vasiliu Falti, Lică Rădulescu, Ion Stănescu, Nicolae Teodoru, O. Rocos, Iancu Constantinescu and Jean Moscopol. It premiered on 22 March 1943 at the ARO theatre. This was the first and last film produced by the ONC; for many years it remained a point of reference in the annals of cinematic art in Romania. Film production nevertheless continued. In 1944, a Romanian-Italian company, Cineromit, assigned the production of the film ''Visul unei nopți de iarnă'' (''A Winter Night's Dream'') to director Jean Georgescu; the script was from the play by Tudor Mușatescu. The film was finished only near the end of the year 1945 due to the events of the war. For the most part, the technical crew was that of ''O noapte furtunoasă'', plus the French cameraman Louis Behrend. The actors were George Demetru, Ana Colda, Maria Filotti, Mișu Fotino and Radu Beligan. It premiered on 2 March 1946 at the Excelsior cinema. There followed in rapid succession several productions completed in cooperation with Danish and Hungarian studios by Balcan-Film Company Bucharest. Of note were ''Allo București'' ('' Hello Bucharest''), ''Furtul din Arizona'' ('' The Arizona Theft'') and "Două lumi și o dragoste" ('' Two Worlds and One Love''), all made in 1946. Also important was the 1946, production ''Pădurea îndrăgostiților'' ('' The Lovers' Forest''), produced at Doina-Film, on which the ONC technical crew worked, with the director and cameraman being Cornel Dumitrescu.


Cinema during Communism (1948-1989)

On November 2, 1948, Decree 303 was signed, regarding "the nationalization of the film industry and the regulation of commerce in cinematic products", marking a new beginning for Romanian cinema. This can also be called the period of socialist cinema. The newly installed regime fully subsidized the production of films which disseminated promotion of socialist values. The same themes were found in
documentaries A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". The American author and media analyst Bill ...
and
newsreel A newsreel is a form of short documentary film, containing news, news stories and items of topical interest, that was prevalent between the 1910s and the mid 1970s. Typically presented in a Movie theater, cinema, newsreels were a source of cu ...
s. So as to have cadres ready to fill the necessary positions in the industry, ''Institutul de artă cinematografică'' (The Institute of Cinematographic Art") was founded, with a mission of preparing the new cadres needed for the new cinema: actors, directors and cameramen. It was from here that the golden generation not only of Romanian film but also of the national theatre graduated: the actors , Iurie Darie, Florin Piersic, , Amza Pellea, Dem Rădulescu, Stela Popescu,
Sebastian Papaiani Sebastian Papaiani (; 25 August 1936 – 27 September 2016) was a Romanian film and television actor. He was born in Pitești; his father was of Greeks, Greek origin. He graduated from the Caragiale National University of Theatre and Film, T ...
, Leopoldina Bălănuță, and Draga Olteanu, along with directors such as Manole Marcus, Geo Saizescu, Iulian Mihu, Gheorghe Vitanidis, and many others. In 1950, construction began at
Buftea Buftea () is a town in Ilfov County, Muntenia, Romania, located north-west of Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Rom ...
on what would come to be called ''Centrul de producție cinematografică Buftea'' (The Buftea Studio), also known as ''C.P.C. Buftea'' (today MediaPro Studios), the main center for film production in Romania. The project was finished in 1959. Technically speaking, C.P.C. Buftea rivalled any Western European film studio. In this period a series of films was produced at the Floreasca Complex, which, since 1956, had been taken over by ''
Televiziunea Română Televiziunea Română (), more commonly referred to as TVR , is the short name for Societatea Română de Televiziune ("Romanian Television Society"; SRTV), the Romanian public television. It operates nine channels: TVR 1, TVR 2, TVR 3, TVR Cu ...
'' (Romanian Television). Another studio of about was built inside the Tomis Cinema. For the production of technical supplies needed both by studios and film distributors, ''Intreprinderea de Stat Tehnocin'' (The Tehnocin State Enterprise) was founded in 1950 and in 1959 merged with ''Industria Optică Română'' (The Romanian Optics Industry).
Movie projector A movie projector (or film projector) is an optics, opto-mechanics, mechanical device for displaying Film, motion picture film by projecting it onto a movie screen, screen. Most of the optical and mechanical elements, except for the illuminat ...
s for 35 mm and 16 mm film were produced, as were sound systems for movie theatres, reflecting lenses, dollies, and artificial studio lights. Likewise, so that there would be technical cadres well-prepared to work in studios and in the operation of movie projectors, professional schools for projectionists were founded at
Craiova Craiova (, also , ) is the largest city in southwestern Romania, List of Romanian cities, the seventh largest city in the country and the capital of Dolj County, situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It i ...
and Târgu-Mureș, while at
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
, a "technical school for technical personnel" was opened, intended to prepare movie theatre operators and studio managers. Until 1948, most of the Romanian animated films were the ones made by Aurel Petrescu but all his animated movies have been lost. However, after 1948 animated films began to be produced at the Bucharest Studio, with a total of 15 films in 1955. Particularly notable was the contribution of
Ion Popescu-Gopo Ion Popescu-Gopo (; 1 May 1923 – 29 November 1989) was a Romanian graphic artist and animator, but also writer, film director, and actor. He was born in Bucharest, Romania. He was a prominent personality in the Romanian cinematography and the ...
, father of the little man who, appearing in ''Scurtă istorie'' ('' A Short History'') in 1957, won him a ''
Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...
'' for Best Short Film at
Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...
that year. The success of Romania's animated films convinced the authorities to found the ''Animafilm'' studio in 1964. Here, "diafilms", slides for teaching use, were also produced, as were television commercials. As far as the distribution of films is concerned, after the nationalization of movie theatres (only 35 mm ones, as 16 mm theatres did not exist), it was concluded that many had to be shut down because of their decaying state or because of their physically obsolete equipment. A crisis followed, there being a shortage of theatre administrators and projectionists that forced films in some counties to be shown only outdoors. This situation caused the Committee for Cinematography to be formed on 7 June 1950 alongside the Council of Ministers, and inside this institution the Film Distribution Network Directorate was established. Later, this office ran the County-level Cinematographic State Enterprises when they were established. The importance of these led to the allocation of funds necessary for the film distribution network to be developed. Implicitly, movie theatres and the establishment of 16 mm cinemas in rural areas were also a goal–together, these objectives were known as ''cineficare'' ("filmification", analogous to electrification). In the 1950s, 1,000 16 mm projectors and 100 film caravans (mobile theatres) were imported from the Soviet Union in order to promote the introduction of film into the rural environment. Reorganizations also took place in the next few years. Thus, in July 1952, ''DirecÈ›ia Difuzării Filmelor (D.D.F.)'' (The Film Screening Directorate) was founded. In 1956 this was merged with the Film Distribution Network Directorate to form ''DirecÈ›ia ReÈ›elei Cinematografice È™i a Difuzării Filmelor (D.R.C.D.F)'' (The Film Distribution and Screening Directorate), under the guidance of the Ministry of Culture. The purpose of this institution was to promote a single policy regarding Romania's movie theatres, "the control and guidance of political-ideological work with the cinema, the showing of films based on the political-technical demands of the various stages of the construction of socialism", as well as to craft the economical-financial plan to be fulfilled. The reorganizations continued, so that in 1971 ''Centrala România-Film'' (Romania-Film Central) was founded, having under its authority C.P.C. Buftea, the financing of film production through five studios, import-export and the screening of films. Although the technical vagaries of the industry at this time have nothing to do with the cinema of Romania as an art, it is also useful to recall how distribution into movie theatres took place. Romanian film production, such as it was in 1948, was practically non-existent. The timid beginnings of Romanian film production were started by director Puiu Călinescu with the film ''Răsună Valea'' (''The Valley Resounds''), with a theme similar to those discussed above. But, for such a "rich national production", other films were needed in the screening repertoire. Hence, the focus was on importing films also produced in countries that had started down the path of constructing socialism. Many of them also had "rich productions" and so everyone in the Eastern Bloc's orientation was toward "the country with the best and most educational cinema in the world, the
USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
". Besides films promoting the new type of government and economy, directors made films which, without renouncing "educational" values, also numbered among them diversionary films, cloak and sword epics, and adaptations of, mostly Russian, literature. Films were even imported from countries without a socialist government. The importation of these films was done in a very rigorous manner with regard to themes. However, the public was not denied a chance to see some of the great works of cinema outside the European socialist bloc, including works of
Italian neorealism Italian neorealism (), also known as the Golden Age of Italian Cinema, was a national film movement characterized by stories set amongst the poor and the working class. They are filmed on location, frequently with non-professional actors. They p ...
and its successors (''
Rome, open city ''Rome, Open City'' (), also released as ''Open City'', is a 1945 Italian Italian neorealism, neorealist war film, war drama film directed by Roberto Rossellini and co-written by Sergio Amidei, Celeste Negarville and Federico Fellini. Set in Rom ...
'', ''
Bicycle Thieves ''Bicycle Thieves'' (), also known as ''The Bicycle Thief'', is a 1948 Italian neorealist drama film directed by Vittorio De Sica. It follows the story of a poor father searching in post-World War II Rome for his stolen bicycle, without which h ...
'', and '' Rocco e i suoi fratelli''), ''
Judgment at Nuremberg ''Judgment at Nuremberg'' is a 1961 American epic legal drama film directed and produced by Stanley Kramer, and written by Abby Mann. It features Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Maximilian Schell, Werner Klemperer, Marlene Dietr ...
'', ''
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'' is a 1967 American romantic comedy drama film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer, and written by William Rose. It stars Spencer Tracy (in his final role), Sidney Poitier, and Katharine Hepburn, and feat ...
'', '' In the Heat of the Night'', a series of
Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...
, ''
Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind ...
'' (United States), and many others from France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Mexico, Japan, and China. The number of films produced by Romanian studios rose, and import taxes were lowered. At one point, 40% of films shown were Romanian and 60% foreign, including those from other
Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP), formally the Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance (TFCMA), was a Collective security#Collective defense, collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Polish People's Republic, Poland, between the Sovi ...
nations.


Highest-grossing Romanian films before 1989


Romanian cinema (1990–present)

Critically acclaimed Romanian New Wave The collapse of Communism changed the situation of Romanian cinema. Romanian cinema achieved prominence in the 2000s with the Romanian New Wave movement that often incorporated a
genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...
of realist and minimalist films that won multiple awards at the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
and the
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
. In 2001 and 2002, Romanian directors competed in the
Directors' Fortnight The Directors' Fortnight (, formerly ) is an independent section held in parallel to the Cannes Film Festival. It was started in 1969 by the French Directors Guild after the events of May 1968 resulted in cancellation of the Cannes festival as a ...
section parallel to the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
with Cristi Puiu's first feature film ''Stuff and Dough'' and
Cristian Mungiu Cristian Mungiu (; born 27 April 1968) is a Romanian filmmaker. He won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for his film '' 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'', which he wrote and directed. He has also won the awards for Best Screenplay and ...
's ''Occident'', respectively. The 2004 ''Trafic'' film directed by Cătălin Mitulescu won the
Short Film Palme d'Or Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known a ...
award at the
2004 Cannes Film Festival The 57th Cannes Film Festival took place from 12 to 23 May 2004. American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino served as jury president for the main competition. While American filmmaker Michael Moore won the Palme d'Or for the documentary film '' Fahrenh ...
. The 2005 ''The Death of Mr. Lazarescu'' film, directed by Cristi Puiu won the
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
award at the
2005 Cannes Film Festival The 58th Cannes Film Festival took place from 11 May and ran until 22 May 2005. Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica served as jury president for the main competition. Cécile de France hosted the opening and closing ceremonies. Belgian filmmakers D ...
. At the
2006 Cannes Film Festival The 59th Cannes Film Festival was held from 17 to 28 May 2006. Chinese filmmaker Wong Kar-wai served as jury president for the main competition, the first Chinese to preside over the jury. English filmmaker Ken Loach won the Palme d'Or for th ...
, Corneliu Porumboiu won the
Caméra d'Or The Caméra d'Or ("''Golden Camera''") is an award of the Cannes Film Festival for the best first feature film presented in one of the Cannes selections (Official Selection, Directors' Fortnight or Critics' Week). The prize was created in 1978 Ca ...
best-first-feature award for ''12:08 East of Bucharest'' and Cătălin Mitulescu who directed ''The Way I Spent the End of the World'' competed in the
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
section. At the
2007 Cannes Film Festival The 60th Cannes Film Festival was held from 16 to 27 May 2007. British filmmaker Stephen Frears served as jury president for the main competition. Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu won the Palme d'Or for the drama film ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 ...
Cristian Nemescu Cristian Nemescu (; 31 March 1979 – 24 August 2006) was a Romanian film director. Nemescu was born in Bucharest, the son of composer Octavian Nemescu. He graduated from the I. L. Caragiale National University of Theatre and Film, Academy for T ...
's posthumous ''California Dreamin won the
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
award, while
Cristian Mungiu Cristian Mungiu (; born 27 April 1968) is a Romanian filmmaker. He won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for his film '' 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'', which he wrote and directed. He has also won the awards for Best Screenplay and ...
's ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'' received the
Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...
. The latter, according to
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
, is "further proof of Romania's new prominence in the film world." ' by won the
Short Film Palme d'Or Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known a ...
at the
2008 Cannes Film Festival The 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 14 to 25 May 2008. American actor and filmmaker Sean Penn served as jury president for the main competition. French filmmaker Laurent Cantet won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for th ...
. The 2009 movie ''Police, Adjective'' directed by Corneliu Porumboiu won the
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
award at the
2009 Cannes Film Festival The 62nd Cannes Film Festival took place from 13 May to 24 May 2009. French actress Isabelle Huppert served as jury president for the main competition. Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for the dram ...
. In 2010, '' If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle'' (aka ''Eu când vreau să fluier, fluier'') directed by
Florin Șerban Florin Șerban (; born 21 January 1975 in Reșița) is a Romanian film director whose film ''If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle'' won the Jury Grand Prix and the Alfred Bauer Prize at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival, 2010 Berlin Film festi ...
won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize and the
Alfred Bauer Prize The Alfred Bauer Prize was an annual film award, presented by the Berlin International Film Festival, as part of its Silver Bear series of awards, to a film that "opens new perspectives on cinematic art". The prize was suspended in 2020 after it ...
at the
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
In 2013 the movie ''Child's Pose'' (''Pozitia copilului'') directed by Călin Peter Netzer won the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
award at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival. In 2015 the movie '' Aferim!'' directed by
Radu Jude Radu Jude (; born 28 March 1977) is a Romanian film director and screenwriter. Most known for his Golden Bear winner film ''Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn'' (2021). Biography In 2003, Jude graduated from the Film Directing Department of the Med ...
won the Silver Bear for Best Director award at the
65th Berlin International Film Festival The 65th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 5 to 15 February 2015, with American film director Darren Aronofsky as the president of the jury. German film director Wim Wenders was presented with the Honorary Golden Bear. The ...
. The 2015 independent horror movie '' Be My Cat: A Film for Anne'' has gained a
cult following A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...
in later years. The 2018 drama film ''Touch Me Not'' directed by Adina Pintilie won the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
award at the
68th Berlin International Film Festival The 68th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 15 to 25 February 2018. German filmmaker Tom Tykwer served as Jury President. American film director Wes Anderson's animated film ''Isle of Dogs (film), Isle of Dogs'' opened th ...
. The 2021
comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
film ''Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn'' written and directed by
Radu Jude Radu Jude (; born 28 March 1977) is a Romanian film director and screenwriter. Most known for his Golden Bear winner film ''Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn'' (2021). Biography In 2003, Jude graduated from the Film Directing Department of the Med ...
won the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
award at the
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
. It is the third Romanian film to win the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
in the last decade. Drop in the domestic Romanian box office During the time period between 2012-2016, according to data by the
European Audiovisual Observatory The European Audiovisual Observatory (, ) is a public service organisation, part of the Council of Europe set up in 1992 as a partial agreement. The observatory collects and analyses data about the audiovisual industry in Europe, such as cinem ...
, domestic productions account for only about 3% of all admissions to cinema in Romania, with US productions dominating the market (72%). As an example, ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'' was viewed by 350,000 people in
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, 142,000 in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, but less than 90,000 in Romania itself. Reemergence of domestic Romanian box office In recent years, domestic Romanian cinema started to gain back popularity, especially in the comedy sector. With examples such as the 2020 comedy movie Miami Bici, which had 550,000+ cinema admissions in just three weeks, during late February-early March 2020, just before the cinemas in Romania closed because of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. The 2022 comedy movie Teambuilding, surpassed one million cinema admissions in January 2023, becoming the first Romanian film since The Second Fall of Constantinople in 1994 to surpass this threshold. From 1 January 2023, the film was also distributed on the Netflix platform. The 2022 comedy movie Mirciulică also gained a big audience. The movie had 320,000+ cinema admissions. 2022 was a good year for Romanian horror movies as well, with the horror movie Capra cu trei iezi amassing 128,503 cinema admissions.


Romanian co-productions/International filming location

Romania has also been chosen by various international filmmakers as a tv series/movie location, such as the 2022 Netflix series
Wednesday Wednesday is the day of the week between Tuesday and Thursday. According to international standard ISO 8601, it is the third day of the week. In English, the name is derived from Old English and Middle English , 'day of Woden', reflecting ...
, the 2003 American
epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...
period
war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...
Cold Mountain, the 2006 French drama film
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
, the 2018 American horror film The Nun and the 2020
fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...
Dragonheart: Vengeance among many others.


See also

*
List of Romanian films A list of the most notable films produced in the Cinema of Romania ordered by year of release. For an A-Z list of articles on Romanian films see :Romanian films. 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s ...
* MediaPro Studios * MediaPro Pictures * Castel Film Romania *
Cinema of Europe Cinema of Europe refers to the Film industry, film industries and films produced in the continent of Europe. The history of Italian cinema began a few months after the French Auguste and Louis Lumière, Lumière brothers, who made the first pub ...
* List of Romanian film and theatre directors


Bibliography

1) Cantacuzino, Ion. "Momente din trecutul filmului românesc" (Moments from Romanian cinema's past). Sections covering up to 1947. 2) Caranfil, Tudor. Memorii și studii (Memoirs and studies) 3) Georgescu, Jean. Memorii și studii (Memoirs and studies) 4) Mihail, Jean. Memorii și studii (Memoirs and studies) Memorii și studii (Memoirs and studies), belong to ANF ( Arhiva Națională de Filme, in English: National Movie Archive) 5) "Filme noi" (New movies) bulletins. Covers the 1948-1989 section: Edited for internal use by RomâniaFilm (). Contains various articles and distribution rules. 6) Different editions of the magazine "Cinema" A comprehensive bibliography of Romanian Cinema can be foun
here


References


External links

* Romanian Cinema Bibliography (Oxford U
Romanian Cinema (first edition, full, up to 2014)Romanian Cinema

A.N.F.

European-films.net
– Reviews, trailers, interviews, news and previews of recent and upcoming European films (in English) * Scholarly Study on Authorship in Romanian Socialist Film
Opening Titles and Authorship in Romanian Socialist Film - full
{{Europe topic, Cinema of