Astra Film Festival Has Started! Gala Screening of the Film About Volodymyr Zelenskyy

The 30th anniversary edition of the Astra Film Festival debuted on Sunday evening with the film "Meeting Zelenski" (work-in-progress), co-directed by the American actor, director and producer Liev Schreiber and the British director and producer André Singer. A film that the spectators from Sibiu or from other areas of Romania, who filled the Thalia hall in Sibiu, had the opportunity to see in the premiere and which they applauded for a long time. After the screening, as is the 30-year tradition at the Astra Film Festival, the filmmakers entered into a dialogue with the audience. The Q&A session was attended by André Singer, from the stage, Liev Schreiber, live from the USA, through a video conference, the writer, publicist and diplomat Emil Hurezeanu and journalist Amalia Enache. The recording of the discussion can be seen here: https://fb.watch/nIH6gepibd/ .

The Opening Gala of the 30th anniversary edition of Astra Film Festival was an event awaited by the festival community, which relived, in a few minutes, the most important and significant moments in the history of the first and longest-running film festival in Romania.

"In the first edition, the films were projected on a television. On the second, on four televisions, linked in the network. Now, we see full-dome and VR movies, which bring the viewer into the middle of the action. Then, the audience left the hall, during a film by Michael Stewart that talked about the inter-ethnic tensions in Transylvania. Now, people see the film, after which they participate in discussions, sometimes adversarial, with the filmmakers. Things have evolved enormously in Romanian society also thanks to the documentary. The documentary film really contributes to the formation of a better, more democratic society, where there is more tolerance and understanding between people" , said Dumitru Budrala, Astra Film Festival's founding director.

The highlight of the Gala was the screening of the event-film "Meeting Zelenski" (work-in-progress), the spectators who filled the Thalia hall in Sibiu had the chance to be the first in the world to see this production.

Made after several meetings between the filmmakers and Volodymyr Zelensky, the documentary presents not only the political rise, but also the artistic career of the Ukrainian leader, from his debut on stage and on television, to the role in the series "Servant of the People", going to the images during the war that followed the Russian aggression. In this way, Sibiu was the scene of a world-class cinematographic event, and the spectators had access, for the first time, to new images from the childhood and adolescence of the Ukrainian president and were able to better understand how it was possible for Volodymyr Zelensky to become, in very short time, one of the most important world leaders.

"The world will remember Zelenskiy as an extraordinary president who was a very good actor. His message, the fact that he declared the day after the start of the conflict that he is staying here, that he is fighting, was a very strong one... I hate to say it, but he has aged a lot in a year. If you look at the photos, you will realize the change. But what impressed me is his determination to continue to answer questions as best as possible, to solve the most important problem, from his point of view: to continue to benefit from the support of the West", said Liev Schreiber in his intervention.

"I really wanted people whose daily lives are affected by what's happening in Ukraine to be the first to see this film. And I think that this place in Romania, the country where my mother was also born, is the perfect place. It is a pleasure and an honor to bring the film here" , confessed André Singer.

"I really wanted people whose daily lives are affected by what's happening in Ukraine to be the first to see this film. And I think that this place in Romania, the country where my mother was also born, is the perfect place. It is a pleasure and an honor to bring the film here" , confessed André Singer.

Astra Film Festival continues today with a rich program, which makes this prestigious cultural event, rightly so, a true celebration of documentary film.

Full schedule : https://www.astrafilm.ro/ro/2023/program-orar

About the Astra Film Festival

Astra Film Festival Sibiu, launched in 1993 as an innovative project, is one of the most important non-fiction film festivals in Europe. Under the High Patronage of the President of Romania, the festival is organized by Astra Film, CNM Astra and the Astra Film Foundation, with the Ministry of Culture as a strategic partner, with the support of the Sibiu County Council, the National Center of Cinematography, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Consulate of the Federal Republic Germany in Sibiu and the Union of Cinematographers. The event is co-financed by the Sibiu City Council through the Sibiu City Hall.

Strategic partner: Ministry of Culture