Romanian East End Film Festival 28 April - 2 May 2011

Transcription

1 Romanian East End Film Festival 28 April - 2 May 2011 icr-london.co.uk eastendfilmfestival.com

2 Event Listings: Thursday 28 April 8.30pm, Cineworld West India Quay Screening: Principles of Life, by Constantin Popescu. Followed by Q&A with leading actor Vlad Ivanov. The short-before-the-feature: Strung Love _ p. 6 Friday 29 April 5pm, - Screening: Morgen, by Marian Crişan. Followed by director Q&A. The short-before-the-feature: Grand Café _ p pm, - Screening: Outbound, by Bogdan George Apetri. Followed by Q&A with the director and leading actress Ana Ularu. The short-before-the-feature: The Cage _ p. 8 Saturday 30 April 6pm, - Screening: Out of the Present, by Andrei Ujică. Followed by director Q&A _ p. 9 8pm, Spitalfields Market - Screening: silent film Manasse, by Jean Mihail, with live music by Minima p. 10 9pm, Village Underground - Party: Transylmania with Urma, Addictive TV, DJ Nico de Transilvania, DJ Si Begg _ p. 12 Sunday 1 May 5pm, - Screening: Tuesday, After Christmas, by Radu Muntean. Followed by director Q&A. The short-before-the-feature: Stopover p pm, - Panel: Romanian Cinema: Waves, Storms and Horizons, with directors Bogdan George Apetri, Marian Crişan, Radu Muntean, Bobby Păunescu, Andrei Ujică and film critic Mihai Fulger. Chaired by Ed Lawrenson p. 15 Monday 2 May 12-8pm, various venues - Programme of short films by the very best of Romanian New Wave directors. Part of the Movie MayDay. A FOCUS FOR ALL SENSES The Romanian Cultural Institute in London is thrilled to partner with East End Film Festival and help make possible an abundant display of Romanian cinematic and musical creativity in the most welcoming context created by this extraordinary London event. We are proud to be invited to create, within a programme already replete with exciting highlights, a Romanian focus that will showcase some of the best feature films and shorts of the latest crop, as well as masterpieces of yesteryear and even classic films of the Silent Era; that will bring directors, actors and film critics to London to talk about the miraculous journey of Romanian cinema; and that will draw everybody on the dance floor with the electrifying sound panoply of Romanian alternative and Balkan music. It all started in 2010 when Bobby Păunescu received the main Festival prize for his impressive debut feature, Francesca, and became the East End Film Festival s director-in-residence, equipped with the task to populate a whole section of it with Romanian films. The aim was achieved through an inspiring collaborative effort at the end of which the three parties involved, the director-in-residence, the Festival and The Romanian Cultural Institute, have become one team. The bond that glued us together is, of course, our love for film. But the Romanian Cultural Institute s partnership with the Festival has been cemented not only by the excitement for moving pictures, but also by adhesion to a set of common values. We too believe that art holds transformative powers in impoverished and marginalized communities. We too expect that films address the crucial problems of today, no matter how sensitive or scandalous, we too appreciate that the most popular maps are in fact cultural topographies. The East End has become an amazing cultural scene and its importance and visibility will increase as the Olympics, and no less the Cultural Olympiad, will move the centre of London many miles to the East. Therefore, our collaboration with the East End Film Festival heralds the beginning of an increased Romanian presence in what will soon become the hottest cultural spot in the world. The Romanian Focus also represents the prelude to a series of, we hope, equally interesting Romanian projects that, among many other things, will perform the miracle to make the Belgravia-based Institute a true East-Ender. Dorian Branea Director Romanian Cultural Institute in London

3 The New Romanian Cinema, Ten Years After by Mihai Fulger The New Romanian Cinema emerged along with the new millennium. Its first major feature was Stuff and Dough (Marfa şi banii, 2001), directed by Cristi Puiu. This film, which is also the most important national debut after the revolution of 1989, provided to Romanian filmmakers a new model of cinema. This has gradually turned into a local fashion, particularly following the huge international success of The Death of Mr Lăzărescu (Moartea domnului Lăzărescu, 2005), the second feature of the same director, which won the Un Certain Regard prize in Cannes and many other awards. Several ingredients of the formula introduced and later imposed by Cristi Puiu can still be identified in recent Romanian films, such as the second feature of Constantin Popescu, Principles of Life (Principii de viaţă), or the fourth feature of Radu Muntean, Tuesday, after Christmas (Marţi, după Crăciun), and it is no coincidence that one of the screenwriters of both mentioned films is Răzvan Rădulescu, who had also contributed to Stuff and Dough and The Death of Mr Lăzărescu. Some of these elements, recurrent in many Romanian films produced during the last decade, are the sheer and uncomfortable realism, the plausible situations (several films are based on real events), the live characters (neither extraordinary, nor exponential), the authentic dialogues (filled with nothings that actually mean a lot and uttered very naturally, without the theatricality that characterized most of the actors performances in previous Romanian films), the parsimonious usage of editing cuts, the programmatic refusal of close-ups and nondiegetic music. All this in an attempt to reflect as honestly as possible the slice of life with a remarkable devotion, sometimes taken to the extreme, to the truth of the stories and characters brought on the screen and not to resort to manipulative cinematic techniques. However, there has been a change of focus in the New Romanian Cinema, from social-related issues and how they influence the lives of the characters, to interpersonal relations (family ties, love and friendship) and what lies beneath them. An excellent example is Radu Muntean s Tuesday, after Christmas, which, as his previous feature, Boogie (2008), proposes a kind of realistic cinema that can attract urban, more (or less) intellectual audiences, thanks to its middle class characters and stories. This time, the director presents a break-up (the protagonist chooses his mistress over his wife, with whom he has a young daughter) and manages to create a strong feeling of real life. In Principles of Life, Constantin Popescu reflects a little more than one day in a life divided between two families. Before leaving in vacation, a successful businessman, apparently very self-controlled, faces growing personal and professional tensions, which could lead to a disaster. Great acting contributes to the verisimilitude of both films. The best feature debut launched in Romanian cinemas in 2010, Morgen by Marian Crişan, transcends the realistic model in order to present a quite classical story about the unusual friendship that develops, beyond words, between an E.T. and his temporary host. The writer-director manages to extract deep meanings from the ordinary, everyday life of the characters, in a memorable, profoundly human dramedy, which can touch audiences all over the world. Outbound (Periferic) by Bogdan George Apetri is another mature and strong debut, which also surpasses the known formula referred to above, a thriller-paced drama that resembles a revenge movie and engages the audience through its gripping story, suffocating atmosphere and impressing performances. As in many other recent Romanian films, the director follows his protagonist over the course of no more than 24 hours. The intelligent use of symbols, such as smoke/fire and water recurring in various forms and suggesting the stages of purification through which the heroine has to pass, distinguishes Bogdan George Apetri from most of the important directors of the New Romanian Cinema, who have rejected the abundance of symbols, metaphors and parables deployed by the older generations of filmmakers. The best Romanian short film of 2010, The Cage (Colivia) by Adrian Sitaru, distinguishes itself through the subtlety with which the complexity of the characters is revealed to us, by means of the contradictory actions and relevant dialogues that draw parallels between human and animal perishable existences. Ioana Uricaru s Stopover, whose script is written by the acclaimed filmmaker Cristian Mungiu, is another short that focuses on the psychology of its main character, at the same time cleverly hinting at the delicate issue of Romanian immigrants in Italy. Other important representatives of the New Romanian Cinema, directors who made their feature debut after 2001 and have been awarded in Cannes and other major film festivals, are Radu Jude, Cătălin Mitulescu, Cristian Mungiu (the first local director to ever win a Palme d Or for a feature film), Cristian Nemescu (who tragically died in 2006), Călin Peter Netzer, Corneliu Porumboiu, Florin Şerban etc. However, the New Romanian Cinema does not comprise only fiction films. Andrei Ujică, a Romanian filmmaker living in Germany, is an auteur whose montage films (using archive materials), which hover at the border between documentary and fiction, are widely considered benchmarks for the genre. Out of the Present (1995) is the middle chapter of a trilogy dedicated to the end of communism, which was begun and ended in Romania, with Videograms of a Revolution (codirected with Harun Farocki, 1992) and, respectively, The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceauşescu (Autobiografia lui Nicolae Ceauşescu, 2010). In Out of the Present, which includes the only new shots in the whole trilogy, Andrei Ujică looks to the East, where he finds and rewrites, by means of editing and voice over the story of the cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, who was in space while the Soviet Union fell apart. Other gifted documentary filmmakers belonging to the New Romanian Cinema are Dan Alexe, Dumitru Budrala, Thomas Ciulei, Florin Iepan, Alexandru Solomon, Ileana Stănculescu etc. Romanian animation has suffered a lot after 1989, but recent years witnessed a growing interest in this genre, coming particularly from young and passionate filmmakers, such as Anton Octavian, Tudor Avrămuţ, Adrian Băluţă, Matei Branea, Cecilia Felméri, Alexei Gubenco etc, who have produced mostly independently many worthy shorts. One of these talented directors is Bogdan Mihăilescu, whose Grand Café pays a touching homage to one of the pioneers of cinema and animation, Émile Reynaud. To sum up, the New Romanian Cinema is not limited to a quasi-dogmatic realism, so you should stay tuned for the pleasant surprises to come from these gifted filmmakers. Mihai Fulger is a Romanian film journalist and critic living in Bucharest. Since 2002, he has published thousands of articles on cinema, in several cultural and general-interest publications, as well as on websites and blogs. He is a member of the Film Critics Association within the Romanian Filmmakers Union (UCIN) and of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI). He has served as programmer and jury member in several film festivals and has been involved in the organization of others.

4 Thursday 28 April, 8.30pm Cineworld West India Quay UK Premiere Principles of Life Principii de viaţă Followed by Q&A with leading actor Vlad Ivanov Director: Constantin Popescu Writers: Răzvan Rădulescu, Alex Baciu Cinematographer: Liviu Mărghidan Cast: Vlad Ivanov, Gabriel Huian, Rodica Lazăr Velicanu considers himself to be a fulfilled person. He has money, a new villa, a young wife, a baby and a son from his first marriage. This deadpan-droll character study is of a man at odds with the modern world, much too stubborn to just go with the flow. But things get a little bit complicated, and a crisis makes him wonder if he is really happy and fulfilled. Romania min Velicanu is played by Vlad Ivanov, best known for supporting roles in Cristian Mungiu s 2007 Palme d Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and Corneliu Porumboiu s Police, Adjective. Here he s very much at front and centre throughout. Friday 29 April, 5pm London Premiere Morgen Followed by Q&A with director Marian Crişan Director & Writer: Marian Crişan Cinematographer: Tudor Mircea Cast: András Hatházi, Yilmaz Yalcin, Elvira Rimbu, Dorin C. Zachei, Molnar Levente Nelu is in his forties and works as a security guard at the local supermarket in a small town on the Romanian- Hungarian border, where many illegal emigrants cross by any means possible. For Nelu, days go in the same way: fishing at dawn, then work, and finally home to the farmhouse where he lives with his wife Florica. One morning, Nelu fishes something different out of the river: a Turkish man, Behren, trying to cross the border! Not able to communicate verbally, the two men somehow understand each other. The short-before-the-feature: Grand Café Director & Writer: Bogdan Mihăilescu Technique: cut-out, 2D computer A true story? It might have happened at the beginning of last century, when, in a black and white, sometimes sepia world, art would bring colour. Romania min Tickets available from Cineworld 7.50 ( 5.50 conc & unlimited card holders) on or at The short-before-the-feature: Strung Love Romania min Director & Writer: Victor Dragomir Cinematographer: Radu Tancău Cast: Bogdan Marhodin, Olivia Nita, Alexandru Potocean May Viorel, a nerd from the smithing class of a communist industrial highschool, enters a rivet-production contest hoping to win the attention and affection of Ileana, a schoolmate from the sewing class. Morgen is a film about the importance of human bonds. Nelu and Behren apparently have nothing in common: One is an adjusted man with a steady job and a family, while the other is an illegal who s left behind his family. However, they establish a bond based on empathy that goes beyond limitations of language-based communication. Tickets available from 7.50 ( 5.50 conc) on or at Romania - France - Hungary min

5 Friday 29 April, 8.30pm UK Premiere Outbound Periferic Followed by Q&A with director Bogdan George Apetri and leading actress Ana Ularu Director: Bogdan George Apetri Writers: Tudor Voican, Bogdan George Apetri Cinematographer: Marius Panduru Cast: Ana Ularu, Andi Vasluianu, Ioana Flora, Mimi Brănescu, Timotei Duma Midway through her prison sentence, Matilda is granted a 24- hour temporary release to attend her mother s funeral. Not willing to return to jail, she plans to escape. Whatever the crime she is in prison for, it seems Matilda wasn t the perpetrator but instead has taken the hit for Paul, the father of her 8-yearold son Toma, and a thoroughly sleazy character. Her day is a chronicle of desperation and hope, with scores to settle and hard knocks to take. But before that day is over, she must confront her troubled past. From an original story written by Cristian Mungiu of 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and shot with a warm brown-tinged look by Marius Panduru of Police, Adjective, this is one of the most The short-before-the-feature: The Cage Colivia Romania min Tickets available from 7.50 ( 5.50 conc) on or at Director & Writer: Adrian Sitaru Cinematographer: Adrian Silişteanu Cast: Adrian Titieni, Vlad Vodă, Clara Vodă Germany min Saturday 30 April, 6pm UK Premiere Out of the Present Followed by Q&A with director Andrei Ujică Director & Writer: Andrei Ujică Cinematographers: Sergei Krikalev, Vadim Yusov Cast: Anatoli Arzebarski, Sergei Krikalev, Helen Sharman, Aleksandr Volkov In May 1991, Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev blasts off into space from the Soviet Union and boards the USSR s MIR Space Station. As Krikalev orbits the planet Earth, the USSR collapses and ceases to exist and Krikalev is unable to return as scheduled. Like a bystander, he circles the earth for 10 months and when he comes back, his world has been transformed. Out of the Present defies categorisation, mixing informative documentary, trippy visuals, political commentary, and philosophical meditation, all with extraordinary footage shot in space on video and 35mm film. Like a documentary cross between Kubrick s 2001: A Space Odyssey and Tarkovsky s Solaris, this film is highly enjoyable and deserves to be seen on the big screen. 8 Romania - Netherlands min A sick dove brought home by Mihăeş s little boy rises new conflicts between father and son but also a possible reconciliation that Mr. Mihăeş does not want to lose. Tickets available from 7.50 ( 5.50 conc) on or at 9

6 Minima s music is an audacious 21st-Century interpretation of the images of silent and avantgarde film. Formed in 2006, Minima perform in cinemas and art centres, as well as music festivals and unexpected venues such as churches and railway arches. Minima s repertoire includes silent feature films: surrealism, horror, science fiction, animation, as well as a programme of silent short films. Minima performed at the 2009 and 2010 editions of the East End Film Festival - the silent screenings of Nosferatu and The Lodger. Silent Cinema: Saturday 30 April, 8pm Spitalfields Market Minima UK Premiere Manasse Director & Writer: Jean Mihail Cinematographer: Vasile Gociu Cast: Romald Bulfinschi, Pepe Georgescu, Maria Ciucurescu, Alexandru Finti, Dorina Demetrescu, Iosif Kamen, George Aurelian Jean Mihail s masterpiece tells the love story between a Romanian man and a Jewish woman, highlighting the religious intolerance in Fălticeni, a small town in the east of Romania. Romania min One of the Spring s coolest events they capture the film s disturbing mood perfectly. The Daily Telegraph, 2010 The atmosphere was absolutely magical hundreds of people seemed utterly spellbound. East End Film Festival, 2009 Minima provide a terrific new soundtrack to the film. Resonance FM, 2008 Acclaimed soundscapers Minima provide a superlative soundtrack Recommended. Time Out London, 2007 More at: Based on the play Manasse / Manasseh by Roman-Ronetti and performed at the National Theatre at that time, the film is one of the most dramatic works speaking about the problems in the Romanian society at the beginning of the 20th century. With thanks to the National Film Archive, Bucharest. FREE. Seating available on a first come, first served basis. FREE. Seating available on a first come, first served basis

7 Saturday 30 April, 9pm Village Underground TRANSYLMANIA Urma is one of Romania s most popular live bands mixing traditional sounds on a strong jazz and rock base. Formed in 2003, they ve since released 4 albums and been at the top of the Romanian charts, as well as performing across European music festivals. Nico de Transilvania was born in Romania, but is now based in Brighton. As a DJ and live performer, Nico has carved her own niche with a unique blend of Balkan Swing & Electro sounds, with the emphasis on Balkan. Often combining live tuba, clarinet, dancers and aerialists into her DJ set, Nico has made her name at the legendary Balkaneasca nights in Brighton. Expect an infectious upbeat energy from behind the turntables as she unleashes slabs of brass, gypsy folk, swing bass and a heavy electronic beat This East End Film Festival gig is their debut London performance. Addictive TV have been described as next level s**t by Grandmaster Flash, no less, and they certainly are trailblazers in the art of audio and video remixing. They re a total audiovisual experience driven by their film remixes and video cut-ups, meticulously sampling everything from cult movies to rock icons. Tonight they join forces with 12foot6 animation for a spectacular remix of Get Well Soon, a multi-disciplinary animation mixing digital, 2D and stop motion. Plus a live remix of We Made Our Own Disaster, Robin Mahoney s eclectic feature-length audiovisual documentary subtitled A Study of Fascism in Late 20th Century Democracies sound-tracked live by Si Begg PARTY DJ Si Begg discovered acid house in the late eighties, began DJing in 1991 and started creating his own music in Initially on Ninja Tune as Cabbage Boy, he branched out under various pseudonyms to release varying forms of techno, big beat and electronica on a whole variety of labels. In the 2000 s he continued to work for the likes of Sven Vath, Cristian Vogel and Mogwai, as well as DJing across Europe with popular London residencies at the Scala and The End. 12 Tickets 10 from

8 Sunday 1 May, 5pm Sunday 1 May, 7.30pm, ) ) Panel Romanian Cinema: Waves, Storms and Horizons Having produced some of the finest films of the past ten years, including The Death of Mr Lăzărescu, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, and 12:08, East of Bucharest, Romanian cinema continues its remarkable show of strength. To mark our showcase of the best in the country s recent cinema, the East End Film Festival presents a panel of leading Romanian filmmakers to talk about what lies at the horizon. London Premiere Tuesday, After Christmas Marţi, după Crăciun Followed by Q&A with director Radu Muntean Director: Radu Muntean Writers: Alex Baciu, Radu Muntean, Răzvan Rădulescu Cinematographer: Tudor Lucaciu Cast: Mimi Brănescu, Mirela Oprişor, Maria Popistaşu, Victor Rebengiuc, Dragoş Bucur Romania min Paul and Adriana married ten years ago and they have an eight year old daughter, Mara. For the past six months, Paul has been involved in an extra-marital affair with Raluca, a twenty seven-year-old dentist. Paul, struggling to find time for both Raluca and his family, decides to take his daughter to the dentist one last time before Christmas. An unexpected change in Adriana s schedule brings the two women in the same room for the first time and forces Paul to make a difficult decision. Led in discussion by Ed Lawrenson, the speakers include Bogdan George Apetri (director, Outbound), Marian Crişan (director, Morgen), Mihai Fulger (film critic), Radu Muntean (director, Tuesday, After Christmas), Andrei Ujică (director, Out of the Present and The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceauşescu), and East End Film Festival s 2011 director-in-residence, Bobby Păunescu (director of Francesca, winner of last year s Debut Feature Award). Romania min The short-before-the-feature: Stopover Director: Ioana Uricaru Writer: Cristian Mungiu Cinematographer: Adi Silişteanu Cast: Monica Bîrlădeanu, Damian Drăghici Tickets available from 7.50 ( 5.50 conc) on or at Ingrid, a beautiful and cosmopolitan Romanian woman, is traveling by plane returning to her home in Oslo. During a short layover on the Malpensa airport in Milan, she realizes her wallet is gone. Left without money and ID, she can t board her flight and is terrified that her delay will jeopardize the upcoming vacation with her husband. Tickets available from 7.50 ( 5.50 conc) on or at 15

9 Venues & Booking Information: Thanks to: Ed Lawrenson, Andrei Ujică, Mihai Fulger, Vlad Ivanov, Constantin Popescu, Verónica Zerpa, Victor Dragomir, Marian Crişan, Anca Puiu, Thomas Petit, Monica Bîrlădeanu, Raluca Păduraru, Radu Muntean, Bogdan Mihăilescu, Bogdan George Apetri, Ioana Uricaru, Ana Ularu, Adrian Sitaru, Adrian Abrudan, Alex Hogg, Alina Ohriniuc, Cristiana Hurduc, Evan Dickerson, Irina Margareta Nistor, Jennifer Rivoire, Gh. Iosif, Loy Arnold, Monica Lăzurean, Sofia Mihailovici, Ovidiu Miron, Nicoleta Cărpineanu, Marian Tutui, Bobby Păunescu, Valeska Neu, Mani Gutau and Adam Whittaker. Cineworld West India Quay 9-11 Hertsmere Road, London, E14 4AB By tube: Canary Wharf / Poplar DLR / West India Quay Box Office: To book tickets: Bethnal Green Road, London E1 6LA By tube: Liverpool Street By bus: 8 / 149 / 242 / 67 / 48 / 26 Box Office: To book tickets: Spitalfields Market 65 Brushfield Street, London E1 6AA By tube: Liverpool Street / Aldgate East All events are FREE. Seating available on a first come, first served basis. Village Underground 54 Holywell Lane, London EC2A 3PQ By tube: Liverpool Street By bus: 35 / 67 / 149 / 8 / 388 To book tickets: The Romanian Cultural Institute promotes contemporary and traditional Romanian arts & culture through international partnership programmes and events. It has a global network of 17 Institutes and works under the patronage of HE the President of Romania. In London, the Institute has been active for several years. It is a member of the European Union National Institutes for Culture and the home of the Enescu Society in the UK. More at Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, the East End Film Festival is one of the biggest film festivals in the UK and offers a 6-day packed programme of screenings and film-focused music and arts events, spread across 29 East-London venues. In 2010, the festival hosted over 200 screenings and events and broke all past records as audiences rose to over 30,000 attracting widespread TV, radio, print and web press attention. More at