Transilvania IFF.23 Numbers: The Most Popular Films and Events of the Festival, Special Guests, and Surprise Moments
After 11 days marking the longest edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival (June 14 – 24, Cluj-Napoca), the organizers announce the event's numbers. In its 23rd year, Transilvania IFF, which spectacularly debuted in Piața Unirii, saw 125,000 locals, tourists, and guests participating in the festival events: hundreds of film screenings, cine-concerts and concerts, exhibitions, special screenings, and meetings with Romanian and international filmmakers.
Cinephiles had the chance to meet stars such as American actress Jojo T. Gibbs (Dogman), German actress Sibel Kekilli (Game of Thrones, Head-On), Italian director Daniele Luchetti (who received a Special Award for his contribution to world cinema), as well as a large number of Romanian actors and directors present in Cluj-Napoca: Catrinel Dumitrescu (who received the Excellence Award), Bogdan Dumitrache, Horațiu Mălăele, Stere Gulea, Emanuel Pârvu, Mara Bugarin, Rodica Lazăr, Andreea Vasile, and Nae Caranfil. Tennis player Ilie Năstase made a surprise appearance, watching the documentary Nasty in Piața Unirii alongside over 2500 spectators. Fashion designer Doina Levintza presented her latest exhibition, 44 Women, in collaboration with stylist Ovidiu Buta. Minister of Culture Raluca Turcan took the stage at the Transilvania IFF Closing Gala, where she awarded Tudor Giurgiu (Transilvania IFF President) the Cultural Merit Order in the rank of Knight, Category D - "Performing Arts."
"This is my first time in Romania and in Cluj. It is very beautiful. I have seen many wonderful films and was surprised by the audience. This festival has a superb audience. People here love films, and you can feel it in the festival's atmosphere," said actress Sibel Kekilli, a member of the Official Competition jury, at the Transilvania IFF Closing Gala.
A moment appreciated and facilitated by Transilvania IFF was the screening of the Romania – Belgium match on the festival's largest screen in Piața Unirii. 8,000 supporters gathered in the square, creating an incredible atmosphere.
Among the films that had sold-out screenings in the festival's largest venues were Romanian productions Moromeții 3 (dir. Stere Gulea), Three Kilometers to the End of the World (dir. Emanuel Pârvu), each watched by over 3,000 spectators, Nasty (dir. Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu, Tudor D. Popescu), which gathered 2,500 spectators, as well as international productions Dogman (dir. Luc Besson), 4,500 spectators, Kinds of Kindness (dir. Yorgos Lanthimos), May December (dir. Todd Haynes), The Beast (dir. Bertrand Bonello), Summer Brother (dir. Joren Molter, winner of the Audience Award), and the Indian film Girls Will Be Girls (dir. Shuchi Talati), which won the Transilvania Trophy. The public also filled the venues for series screened in the Coming Soon section: the first episode of the phenomenon series produced by MAX – House of the Dragon, and the Romanian production Comrade: The Making, Glory, and Unmaking of a Dictator, both watched by hundreds of spectators.
The Garden Party event, which opened the gates of the recently renovated Bánffy Castle in Răscruci, was one of the first sold-out events of this edition. The cine-concert Metropolis (dir. Fritz Lang, 1927) with music by Italy's Edison Studio at Bánffy Castle in Bonțida, and the Film Food events, which combine cinema with gastronomy, were also highlights.
Over 1,000 Romanian and international guests – filmmakers, screenwriters, producers, and actors – participated in screenings and in the RO Days | Industry Events programs dedicated to industry professionals.
The organizers have also announced the dates for the 24th edition of Transilvania IFF, which will take place from June 13 – 22, 2025, in Cluj-Napoca. Until then, Transilvania IFF films can be seen at other festivals in the country and in Moldova: in Bucharest (June 27 – 30, Cinema Elvire Popesco), at Transilvania IFF Chișinău (June 28 – 30), at the Sunscreen Film & Arts Festival in Constanța (August 29 – September 1), and Transilvania IFF Oradea (September 27 - 29).
