Radu Jude\u2019s new film,<\/span> Dracula<\/i><\/b>, is an experimental and satirical reinterpretation of the vampire myth. The film follows the story of a theatre director who attempts to stage a play about Dracula, but his project turns into a reflection on history, propaganda and national identity. Blending styles that range from grotesque to avant-garde, the film includes AI-generated animations, explicit scenes and visually striking sequences. Radu Jude describes his approach as an attempt to offer \u201ca bit of everything for everyone\u201d: commercial film and essay, vampire movie and comedy, political film and satire, erotic film and action film.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\nSorella di Clausura<\/i><\/b>, directed by Ivana Mladenovi\u0107, tells the story of Stela, an educated woman living in a rural area who dreams of meeting Boban, a famous Serbian musician. When she is promised an encounter, she moves to Bucharest, only to end up working as a maid. The long-awaited meeting with her idol proves to be a disappointment. The film combines reality and fiction, playfully mocks romantic melodrama and portrays life in marginalised communities, as well as the illusion of success. Katia Pascariu received the Independent Critics\u2019 Award for Best Actress at Locarno, while Ivana Mladenovi\u0107 won the Best Director Award at the Sarajevo Film Festival.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\nIn <\/span>Don\u2019t Let Me Die<\/i><\/b>, directed by Andrei Epure, Maria is haunted by the mysterious death of her neighbour, rumoured to have \u201cspoken to the trees.\u201d As time passes, Maria becomes increasingly entangled in the life left behind: she adopts Isabela\u2019s dogs, meets her son and has an unexpected encounter with a woodcutter afraid to fall asleep. The film oscillates between grief and revelation, exploring loneliness, memory and the traces people leave behind, even through absence. <\/span>Don\u2019t Let Me Die<\/i><\/b> premiered this year at the Locarno Film Festival.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Dracula<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Sorella di Clausura<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Nu m\u0103 l\u0103sa s\u0103 mor<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Interior Zero<\/i><\/b>, directed by Eugen Jebeleanu, is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Lavinia Brani\u0219te. Cristina, a 35-year-old secretary, lives in an oppressive Bucharest and struggles to understand what it means to be the functional adult society expects her to be, while also trying to remain a good daughter to the single mother who raised her. Cristina is also the protagonist of a novel that a film director is adapting. As actors begin to inhabit her story, their lives and social circumstances start to blur with the fiction they are supposed to portray. The film had its world premiere at the Vilnius International Film Festival and was selected for Smart7, a programme dedicated to emerging filmmakers from seven European countries.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\nStill Nia<\/i><\/b>, directed by Paula One\u021b, centres on \u0218tefania, who, after 15 years of amnesia caused by a childhood medical error, tries to rediscover her identity at 33 and to reconnect with her estranged body and her inner child. Dance becomes a new language in her path toward healing old wounds and rebuilding her relationship with her mother. Presented as a work-in-progress at One World Romania, <\/span>Still Nia<\/i><\/b> was also selected for the Sarajevo Film Festival 2024.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\nComatogen<\/i><\/b>, directed by Igor Cobileanski, tells the story of Alina, a nurse played by Daniela Nane, who finds herself in a desperate situation: she must quickly raise money to pay off her son\u2019s debt or he risks imprisonment. Faced with this challenge, she encounters an unexpected moral dilemma. The film explores difficult decisions and their profound consequences on those involved. <\/span>Comatogen<\/i><\/b> was screened in the Romanian Days section at the Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF) 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Interior Zero<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Still Nia<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/mask><\/g><\/g><\/filter><\/defs><\/svg><\/div>Comatogen<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
This year, the <\/span>Autumn Previews<\/span><\/i> selection is completed by two programmes of Romanian short films, out of competition. Some of these titles were previously presented at Cannes, in the Semaine de la Critique and Cin\u00e9fondation sections. Festival audiences will be able to discover: <\/span>Mama!<\/i><\/b> directed by Teodor Ioni\u021b\u0103, officially selected at the Premiers Plans Festival, <\/span>Triassic Cuddle<\/i><\/b>, by Iulia Turicianu, screened at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and Shanghai International Film Festival, <\/span>Marinic\u0103, My Boy<\/i><\/b>, by Mihnea Toma, shown at DocLisboa; <\/span>Ali\u0219veri\u0219<\/i><\/b>, by Vasile Tondinc\u0103, screened in Semaine de la Critique at Cannes; <\/span>Our Sea<\/i><\/b>, by Alle Dicu; and <\/span>We Lived Slowly in Times of Peace<\/i><\/b>, directed by Kristina Jacot. Another shorts programme includes <\/span>Erogenesis<\/i><\/b>, also presented at Cannes (Semaine de la Critique) and winner of the Best National Film Award at BIEFF <\/span>Weaving Anni Albers<\/i><\/b> by Alessandro del Vigna, <\/span>Milk<\/i><\/b> and <\/b>Cookies<\/i><\/b> by Andrei Tache Codreanu (screened at Cin\u00e9fondation, Cannes), <\/span>Kobza<\/i><\/b> by Laura Pop, <\/span>Brushes and Packaging<\/i><\/b> by Adrian Latu and <\/span>Du-m\u0103 la ap\u0103<\/i><\/b> by Teona Galgo\u021biu. After each screening block, audiences will have the opportunity to meet the filmmakers for discussions.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\nThis year, the Autumn Previews mark a special event centred around the screening of the medium-length film <\/span>Index<\/i><\/b>, directed by Radu Muntean. In an eerily beautiful forest, an ornithologist (played by Adrian V\u0103ncic\u0103) discovers a wild creature (played by Alexandru Bumbariuc) through an infrared surveillance camera. Written and directed by Radu Muntean and premiered worldwide this August at the Locarno Film Festival, <\/span>Index<\/i><\/b> blends an unusual sense of humour with a cinematic expressiveness that balances realism and innovation through its narrative, filming and colour techniques and, above all, its ability to surprise. Radu Muntean will be present with the film\u2019s team for an extensive Q&A with the audience, moderated by Roxana C\u0103linescu and Andrei T\u0103n\u0103sescu, as part of the <\/span>Let\u2019s talk about\u2026 film<\/span><\/i>