This time, we’ll take a tour around the country and look at film festivals held in unique places, such as by the seaside, in the Danube Delta, or in the mountains, where the public can enjoy diverse programs featuring screenings, talks with special guests, and many other events.

Eforie Colorat

Eforie Colorat Festival returns for its third edition between July 3 and September 10 in Eforie Sud (Constanta). Developed in partnership with European cultural institutes and embassies, and international film festivals, Eforie Colorat offers a wide range of activities, from screenings by the sea, concerts, and debates to exhibitions, workshops, and ecological actions.

The film program includes a variety of titles, from Hollywood blockbusters to European productions, documentaries, shorts, and experimental films, which will be screened every evening from 7 pm at the Cinemascop Garden. Entry is free.

On Tuesdays, we have the CineShort section, which presents the most interesting short films of the moment. On Wednesdays, the spotlight is on the RetroCinema section, which hosts classic films, and the Kinedok section, which features documentaries. Thursdays offer children’s animations at CineKids, Fridays and Saturdays showcase European films, and Sundays are dedicated to international blockbusters at CineHit.

The public will also have the chance to see Alexandru Solomon’s newest documentary Arsenie. An Amazing Afterlife. The screening will take place on August 25 and will be followed by a Q&A with the director and the film team.

Filmul de Piatra

Now in its 15th edition, Filmul de Piatra takes place between July 13 – 16 in Piatra Neamt. The festival program comprises film screenings, workshops, masterclasses, parties, and concerts.

This year’s selection includes 27 short films, 18 presented in competition and 9 out of competition. Among the feature films shown during the festival are DAVID (dir. Radu Muntean), Another Lottery Ticket (dir. Paul Negoescu), Day of the Tiger (dir. Andrei Tănase), and To the North (dir. Mihai Mincan). The screenings are complemented by talks with special guests, such as Tibi Ușeriu (the protagonist of the documentary film DAVID), Andu Radu (film editor and colorist), Dorian Boguță (actor), and Roxana Stroe (director).

The public will also enjoy concerts by COMA, Şuie Paparude, Fără Zahăr, Silent Strike, Muse Quartet, and Dan Badu.

“Șerban Ionescu” Theater and Film Festival

The third edition of the “Șerban Ionescu” Theater and Film Festival takes place between July 22 – 29 in 2 Mai (Constanta).

This year’s program comprises 5 sections – Theater, Film, Expo, Concert, Forum – and over 50 cultural events with free entry, all united under the theme “la fel. aproape la fel. altfel” (the same. almost the same. different), which serves as “a generous and, at the same time, thought-provoking outline for the times we live in” (Edda Coza, director of vision and communication).

The festival opens with a show by Taraful Șaraimanii from Clejani, and it concludes with a concert by the alternative rock band Omul cu Șobolani.

To celebrate 40 years since the premiere of Constantin Vaeni’s 1983 film Impossible Love, starring Șerban Ionescu, the festival presents the special section “40 years in 4 films”, meant as a foray through Romanian cinema. Apart from the mentioned title, the public will have the opportunity to revisit three more iconic films: Sundays on Leave (dir. Nae Caranfil, 1993), Niki and Flo (dir. Lucian Pintilie, 2003), and Child’s Pose (dir. Călin Peter Netzer, 2013).

The two competition sections – theater and film – feature 5 stage performances and 10 short films, respectively. The jury consists of Maria Popistașu (actress), Mimi Brănescu (actor, screenwriter, and playwright), Velica Panduru (set designer), and Vlad Cristache (director and director of the Excelsior Theatre in Bucharest).

Anonimul International Independent Film Festival

In August, we move to Sf. Gheorghe in the Danube Delta for the 20th edition of the Anonimul Festival, held between August 14 – 20.

The program includes two short film competitions, national and international, a feature film competition, and out-of-competition screenings, all with free entry.

“This year’s selection, dominated by female filmmakers, shows that there are more and more female voices in Romanian cinema, and that’s encouraging. Part of it is represented by student films, announcing a new generation of talents worth following. The rest are equally promising films by directors who are now embarking on their filmmaking journey. I hope the selection will surprise the audience as much as the freshness of the films surprised me,” says Ionuț Mareș, film critic and curator of the competition program.

The feature films presented during the festival include Refuge (dir. Liviu Mărghidan), Arsenie. An Amazing Afterlife (dir. Alexandru Solomon), Nora (dir. Carla Teaha), Between Revolutions (dir. Vlad Petri), Day of the Tiger (dir. Andrei Tănase), Mammalia (dir. Sebastian Mihăilescu).

Melissa Antonescu

Writer, photographer and videographer. For Films in Frame she writes news about the latest happenings in the film world and brings to the readers' attention the productions that can be seen at the cinema. When she's not writing articles, she's photographing people in a small studio or searching for new cake recipes.