email print share on Facebook share on Twitter share on LinkedIn share on reddit pin on Pinterest

Anamaria Marinca

Shooting Star 2008 - Romania

by 

Anamaria Marinca's debut in Sex Traffic in 2004 was widely appreciated: she won a BAFTA TV Award and recognition from Royal Television Society. Last year she was nominated at the European Film Awards for her performance in 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cristian Mungiu
interview: Oleg Mutu
film profile
]
. Cristian Mungiu’s movie took the Palme d'Or at Cannes Festival and many other international prizes. This year we will see Marinca in Boogie and in The Last Enemy.

(The article continues below - Commercial information)

Cineuropa: In 2007 Maria Popistasu represented Romania at the Shooting Stars. What are your expectations of this event in Berlin?
Anamaria Marinca: I’m flattered they considered me this year and I think Maria is a very talented actress, I’m so glad I had the opportunity to work with her in Sex Traffic. I’m looking forward to meeting the other Shooting Stars and everyone else involved in this programme.

How did you prepare for the role in 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and how much of what we seen onscreen were your own ideas?
I don’t think one can take the credit for all the ideas that appear during shooting, a movie does not belong to one person. We inspired and encouraged one another and I was very lucky to be around amazing professionals. The story's intensity Cristian Mungiu's brilliance in telling it and giving it structure made us feel free and creative with our parts.

Youth Without Youth was regarded by many as a disappointment. What did you learn from your experience with Francis Ford Coppola?
It’s so easy to be judgmental. Meeting Francis Ford Coppola, whom I admire deeply, was important to me both from artistic and human points of view. That one day of filming on the set with him and Tim Roth meant a lot to me, especially since I feel so close to Mircea Eliade’s prose.

We’ve seen you in the theatre, on TV series and in movies. Was theatre a valuable advantage in your career or just a normal step?
I was trained as a theatre actress and I will always go back to theatre. I wouldn’t have been able to play parts in movies without the experience gained onstage in plays like 4.48 Psychosis, Titus Andronicus, Measure for Measure. They are all important for me and they all connect.

This year you will appear in Boogie, directed by Radu Muntean. Why did you choose this project?
I said yes to Radu because I know his work. His film The Paper Will be Blue is one of my favorite movies. I would love to work with him again.

The Last Enemy is the latest TV project you've been attached to. What can you tell us about this story?
It was very different from what I'd played up until then - my character is a half-Bosnian, half-Turkish doctor. One of the main themes of The Last Enemy deals with the imminent loss of privacy and individuality in favor of social security, questioning the importance and the necessity for personal freedom....

Who are the actors and the directors you wish to work with at some point?
I would like to work again with Christian Benedetti, Alexandru Darie, David Yates, Simon McBurney, Cristian Mungiu, Radu Muntean. And I have a huge list of wonderful actors I’ve performed with... I’d love to meet them all at some point, either on stage or on a film set...

(The article continues below - Commercial information)

Did you enjoy reading this article? Please subscribe to our newsletter to receive more stories like this directly in your inbox.

Privacy Policy