The fact that up-and-coming Romanian directors are cutting loose from the previous, successful generation was already noticeable in last year’s selection for the Romanian Days section – the national competition and local production showcase taking place within the larger Transilvania International Film Festival. During its upcoming 21st edition (17-26 June, Cluj-Napoca), the gathering will pay particular attention to local cinema's new voices by presenting works by a significant number of first-time filmmakers. Alongside the feature-film selection, 18 new shorts will be screened as well.

Two of the full-length productions will be locking horns for the Transilvania Trophy in the International Competition, too: they are Octav Chelaru's debut, A Higher Law (see the news), and Emanuel Pârvu’s drama Mikado [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Emanuel Pârvu
scheda film], which premiered at San Sebastián last autumn. Meanwhile, the hybrid experiment You Are Ceaușescu To Me [+leggi anche:
recensione
scheda film] by Sebastian Mihăilescu, revolving around a casting call for a film about the former dictator's early years, is included both in the What's Up, Doc? section for documentaries, which will give out awards for the first time this year, and in the National Competition.

Among the national premieres is Alexandru Belc’s Metronom [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Alexandru Belc
scheda film], set back in the communist years and being shown in Romania immediately after Cannes; Ștefan Constantinescu's noir love triangle Man and Dog [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Ştefan Constantinescu
scheda film]; Gabriel Achim's post-modern and fragmented Snowing Darkness [+leggi anche:
recensione
intervista: Gabriel Achim
scheda film]; and Ligia Ciornei's independently made Clouds of Chernobyl, dealing with a forced terminated pregnancy owing to the titular disaster (see the news). Written and directed by Florin Piersic Jr, the provocative infidelity drama Nothing About Love [+leggi anche:
intervista: Florin Piersic Jr.
scheda film] will celebrate its world premiere in Cluj, alongside Victor Canache's indie debut The Goat with Three Kids, developed from the 2019 short film of the same title.

Another three Romanian pictures, which have already secured theatrical distribution, will be re-released in the Romanian Days section: the latest San Sebastián Grand Prix winner, Blue Moon [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Alina Grigore
scheda film] by Alina Grigore; Immaculate [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Monica Stan, George Chiper…
scheda film] by directorial duo Monica Stan and George Chiper-Lillemark; and Miracle [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Bogdan George Apetri
scheda film], the second part in Bogdan George Apetri's trilogy, with both of the latter films having celebrated their world premieres at Venice. Additionally, Anca Damian's latest animated oeuvre, The Island [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
scheda film], will enjoy a special screening in the Romanian Days, after starting its international festival run at Rotterdam and Göteborg last January.