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Romanian Film Festival Seattle, 10th Edition
The Romanian Film Festival Seattle is excited to celebrate its 10th anniversary edition this year. Running Nov. 4-12, the festival will mark the return to SIFF Uptown Cinema Nov. 4-5 (its home until 2020), and will continue the following weekend at Northwest Film Forum. The online program will be available for the duration of the festival.
Started in 2014 with the scope of bringing Romanian cinema to audiences in Seattle, the festival has adapted and blossomed over the years. It soldiered through the pandemic, thanks to a loyal audience that followed it as it transformed to a virtual program. This year it continues to enjoy a hybrid format, with an online selection available in the continental US and in-person screenings at SIFF Cinema Uptown and Northwest Film Forum.
Through the years, each edition has brought thought-provoking and award-winning productions from Romania and Eastern Europe, giving a platform to upcoming and established directors alike.
This year’s theme “One Eye Laughing, One Eye Crying” is a nod to its first edition in 2014 - the duality of the Romanian spirit that propels it forward in spite of constant hardships. The first year saw an overwhelming success following a grassroots effort to mobilize the Romanian community in the greater Seattle area.
This year’s nuanced edition celebrates the rich cultural fabric of Romania, while exploring current topics with the unflinchingly honest perspectives that fans of the festival have come to expect from Romanian cinema. The program will comprise of critically-acclaimed films and newly released films, and featuring special guests from Romania.
Daniel Ursache, the graphic artist behind the festival posters over the years, has once again turned his creative eye to reflect the unstopping energy of the festival.
Mark your calendars and let’s keep the story going!
If you have a business or reprezent an organization, please check out our sponsorship package and let us know if you would like to benefit from our advertising opportunities.
Festival Official Partners and Co-organizers:
Festival Institutional Partners: 
Supporting Sponsors: 
Festival Ambassadors: 
Films
Fundraising Campaign
Thank you for your generosity! Our goal is to raise $20,000 to cover costs associated with programming, publicity, technical support and film distribution rights. We will keep the fundraising campaign open on our website and Facebook.
Checks are welcome. Please address them to:
American Romanian Cultural Society
1931 E Lynn St
Seattle, WA 98112
Boss
by Bogdan Mirică
2022, Thriller, 126 min
(Romania, Luxembourg, Sweden)
Bogdan, an innocuous ambulance driver, becomes involved in an armed robbery to support his ailing mother's medical needs. While fleeing from the scene, he accidentally hits a witness, who ends...
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Bogdan, an innocuous ambulance driver, becomes involved in an armed robbery to support his ailing mother's medical needs. While fleeing from the scene, he accidentally hits a witness, who ends...
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Between Revolutions
by Vlad Petri
2023, Hybrid documentary, 70 min (Romania, Croatia, Qatar, Iran)
“Between Revolutions" illuminates the letters exchanged between Maria, a Romanian, and Zahra, an Iranian, who forge a deep connection while studying together at medical school in 1970s Bucharest. The letters...
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“Between Revolutions" illuminates the letters exchanged between Maria, a Romanian, and Zahra, an Iranian, who forge a deep connection while studying together at medical school in 1970s Bucharest. The letters...
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Playback
by Iulia Rugină
2023, Documentary, 77 min
(Romania)
In communist Romania of the 80s, DJs were the only ones who brought outside music to the people. Tracks were trafficked on vinyl or secretly recorded from foreign radio stations...
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In communist Romania of the 80s, DJs were the only ones who brought outside music to the people. Tracks were trafficked on vinyl or secretly recorded from foreign radio stations...
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Taxi Drivers
by Bogdan Theodor Olteanu
2022, Dark comedy/drama, 106 min (Romania, Bulgaria)
Taxi Drivers Liviu and Lică navigate the nocturnal life of Bucharest, picking up passengers who turn to them for therapy, political discussions, assistance in criminal enterprises, and more. Each driver...
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Taxi Drivers Liviu and Lică navigate the nocturnal life of Bucharest, picking up passengers who turn to them for therapy, political discussions, assistance in criminal enterprises, and more. Each driver...
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Men of Deeds
by Paul Negoescu
2022, Dark comedy/drama, 106 min (Romania, Bulgaria)
Ilie settles in the countryside as a policeman, seeking a more tranquil lifestyle. However, his relaxed approach to his job entangles him in a violent crime. When he finally starts...
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Ilie settles in the countryside as a policeman, seeking a more tranquil lifestyle. However, his relaxed approach to his job entangles him in a violent crime. When he finally starts...
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Why Do They Write On Walls? by Alin Boeru
2023, Documentary, 85 min
(Romania)
"Why Do They Write on the Walls?" delves into the history and ideology of Romanian street art and graffiti, interwoven with interviews of the country's most renowned street artists. Started...
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"Why Do They Write on the Walls?" delves into the history and ideology of Romanian street art and graffiti, interwoven with interviews of the country's most renowned street artists. Started...
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E Pericoloso Sporgersi
by Nae Caranfil
1993, Romantic comedy, 104 min
(Romania)
Horațiu, an army recruit, is hot on the heels after Cristina, a senior in high school. She’s not necessarily against it, but only after a mandatory engagement, something he will...
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Horațiu, an army recruit, is hot on the heels after Cristina, a senior in high school. She’s not necessarily against it, but only after a mandatory engagement, something he will...
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Phoenix Har/Jar
by Cornel Mihalache
2022, Music documentary, 70 min (Romania)
"Phoenix. Har/Jar" reunites the members of the legendary rock band from the period before they left communist Romania in 1977, and highlights the important moments in the band's tumultuous chronology,...
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"Phoenix. Har/Jar" reunites the members of the legendary rock band from the period before they left communist Romania in 1977, and highlights the important moments in the band's tumultuous chronology,...
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The Chalice. Of Sons and Daughters by Cătălina Tesăr and Dana Bunescu
2022, Documentary, 84 min
(Romania)
The documentary follows Peli and Nina, a young Roma couple striving to conceive a son in order to comply with local custom. While they live under tremendous strain and keep...
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The documentary follows Peli and Nina, a young Roma couple striving to conceive a son in order to comply with local custom. While they live under tremendous strain and keep...
Read MoreGuests
Iulia Rugină
Iulia Rugină is a Bucharest based director and screenwriter. She has a BA and a MA degree in film and television directing at Bucharest’s National University of Theatre and Film (UNATC). In 2020 she completed a PhD on low budget cinema at the same university. She has written and directed twelve shorts and three feature films, among which Stuck on Christmas (2010), Love Building (2013), Dying from a Wound of Love (2014), Breaking News (2016). In 2018 she made her theater debut with the multimedia show Neverland, which she wrote and directed. In 2020 she directed six of the eight episodes of the HBO Max series Ruxx. Since 2099 she is also actively involved in cultural management (through Control N, the cultural NGO she has co-founded), and film education (through various projects she has participated in, as a film tutor), having worked with professional screenwriters, amateur filmmakers, children, ethnic minorities, inmates and drug addicts. She taught screenwriting at the National University of Theater and Film in Bucharest for 10 years, before switching to script consultancy in national and international projects.
Iulian Postelnicu
Iulian Postelnicu graduated from the National University of Theatre and Film in Bucharest with a Bachelor's Degree in acting. He played several supporting characters in films such as Domestic (2012), A Decent Man (2018), and One Floor Below (2015) for which he received a Gopo nomination as Best Supporting Character. In 2019 he played the character of Vali in Arrest, for which he won the Gopo Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. His more recent characters include Costin in Otto the Barbarian (2020), nominated for the Gopo Award as Best Supporting Character, Daniel in the HBO TV show Ruxx (2022), Sorin in the HBO TV show Spy/Master (2023), and Ilie in Men of Deeds (2022), for which he won the Best Performance Award at FIFF Namur, the Outstanding Individual Performance Award at FilmFestival Cottbus, and the Gopo Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. In addition to his acting career, Iulian Postelnicu worked as a writer for several Romanian TV shows like Mondenii, SRC, and Las Fierbinti. He co-wrote, together with Bogdan George Apetri, the screenplay for Unidentified (2020), for which they won the Gopo Award for Best Screenplay.Supporters
Private donors
Supporting sponsor · $1,000 and more
| Mihai and Gabriela Aluaș |
| Ana and Radu Bacioiu |
| Cosmin and Elena Catrinescu |
Festival ambassador · $500 and more
| Dana and Catalin Cozmei |
| Gabriel and Teodora Ghizila |
| Andreea Larhs |
| Tracy Sharpe and Roxana Arama |
| Alexandrina Maicaneanu and Radu Simionescu |
| Mary Sherhart |
| Nick Voicu |
| Gabriel and Raluca Hera |
| NW Family Dental - Daciana Buse, DDS, MSD |
Festival benefactor · $250 and more
Ioana and Doru Nica |
| Tudor and Otilia Baraboi |
| James Augerot and Ileana Marin |
| Allergy & Asthma Care of Manhattan, PLLC |
| Lavinia Serban |
| Marius and Alina Popa |
| Roxana Teodorescu |
| Claudiu and Dana Raileanu |
| Ramona and Marian Pungan |
| Cristi and Irina Salvan |
| Nicoleta and Andrei Zlati |
| Isabella Fu and Radu Palanca |
| Luana and Marian Stanescu |
Festival supporter · $100 and more
| Mihaela Giurca |
| Camelia and Ciprian Clinciu |
| Oana Stepan |
| Laura Romanschi |
| Cristina Houston |
| Smaranda Lieuallen |
| Corina Varlam |
| Michele Anciaux Aoki |
| Claudia Jensen |
| Cristian and Ana Maria Ilac |
| Catalin Alaci and Mirela Dinu |
| Ligia Cicos |
| George Roth |
| Monica Poinescu |
| Carmen and Bogdan Răutu |
| Elizabeta and Adrian Iliescu |
| Helene Kaplan |
| Carl Winter |
| Edward Blau |
| Lavinia Serban |
| NomNom Creative |
Festival friend · $50 and more
| Georgiana Lucache |
| Magda Nica |
| Sheila Speirs |
| George Strajan |
| Mihaela Armanasu |
Special Thanks · $25 and more
| Florina Gusu |
Special thanks · $10 and more
| Cristina Amaral |
| Tatiana Chihai |
| Anonymous |