An enthusiastic audience has filled up the two rooms of the New York Tribeca Cinemas for the 5th Romanian Film Festival organized by the Romaian Cultural Institute in NY, The Transilvania International Film Festival and the Tribeca Cinemas. Entitled “A New Beginning” and held this year from December 3rd – 5th, the festival was much appreciated by both the US audience and press.
Calin Peter Netzer's Medal of Honor and Alexander Nanau's The World According to Ion B. were the winners of the Audience Award, voted by the festival's attendants.
The 5th Romanian Film Festival offered a spotlight on the best of what Romanian cinema had to offer in 2010, including a focus on Romanian Women Directors, a retrospective of documentaries produced by HBO Romania, and a selection of some of the best short films of the year, together with a special Closing Night screening of Carnival Scenes (dir. Lucian Pintilie, 1981).
Legend Romanian actor Victor Rebengiuc was the honourabile guest of this year's edition, while the guest list also included actresses Monica Barladeanu (Francesca), Mariana Mihut (Carnival Scenes), Ozana Oancea (First of All, Felicia, Stuck on Christmas), director/producer Bobby Paunescu (Francesca, Aurora), producer Andrei Cretulescu (Merry Circus, The Shukar Collective Project, The World According to Ion B.), producer/director Tudor Giurgiu, director of Transilvania International Film Festival, Professor Vladimir Tismaneanu, and film critic Alex Leo Serban.
The Romanian Film Festival in New York Citywas initiated in 2006, and is a partnership of the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York (RCINY) with the Transilvania International Film Festival and Tribeca Cinemas. Initiated and chaired by Corina Suteu, director of RCINY, the festival selection committee also includes Mihai Chirilov, curator, and Oana Radu, RCINY deputy director. Since its inception, the festival has featured great works of contemporary Romanian cinema such as The Death of Mr. Lazarescu by Cristi Puiu; 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days by Cristian Mungiu; California Dreamin’ (endless) by Cristian Nemescu; and, 12:08 East of Bucharest by Corneliu Porumboiu. The Festival is also devoted to revisiting landmark Romanian films, and has presented great works such as Reenactment and The Oak by Lucian Pintilie.
