The Transylvania International Film Festival opens its doors today, June 17, with a special screening of one of the most anticipated titles of 2022 – Call Jane (directed Phyllis Nagy), a brave story about some women who changed the world, with Elizabeth Banks and Sigourney Weaver in the lead roles.
More than 2,500 spectators are expected at the gala event, scheduled for 8:45 pm in Unirii Square in Cluj-Napoca. Until June 26, the largest film event in Romania will bring to the newly designated city UNESCO City of Film over 350 screenings – legendary stories and films for the first time, a strong selection of music and dinner-concerts, exhibitions, workshops innovations, debates and culinary experiences. Dozens of Romanian and foreign guests, prominent representatives of the film world, have confirmed their presence at TIFF 2022.
The Opening Gala will begin with a musical moment signed by the Strings Quartet, presented at TIFF by IQos. Among the personalities who have already confirmed their presence at the event are Emil Boc, Mayor of Cluj-Napoca, and Liviu Jicman, President of the Romanian Cultural Institute, two of the supporters of the event. The evening will continue with an extraordinary recital given by a legend of Romanian light music: Corina Chiriac. The artist who delighted whole generations of Romanians with her unmistakable voice is a graduate of IATC „I.L. Caragiale ”and debuted on the stage of the Comedy Theater in Bucharest. Before launching into her music career, Corina Chiriac starred in TV and film productions, including Adventures on the Black Sea (directed by Savel Stiopul), with Florin Piersic. The artist will be honored on the stage of the Gala and will receive a special distinction, awarded in honor of over five decades of activity. Fans will be able to enter into a dialogue with her the next day, from 11:00, during the first meeting with Romanian artists from the InspiraTIFF series, organized in Unirii Square every day of the festival, with free access.
The first weekend will bring the most expected films on the festival’s screen. Recently awarded supernovas, films racing for the Transylavnia Trophy, challenging documentaries and movies for the entire family within the EducaTIFF section, will be seen in 15 locations.
The program of the long-awaited Castle Weekend will not be missing from the program – two evenings with special screenings, organized in the spectacular setting of Bánffy Castle in Bonțida. On Saturday, June 18, at 9:45 pm, the artists of the Hungarian Opera of Cluj will accompany live the screening of Nosferatu, the masterpiece of F.W. Murnau who defined the horror genre, and on Sunday, from the same hour, the spectators will watch for the first time in Romania, in a unique screening, Everything Everywhere All At Once, a comedy-phenomenon, which combines humor with martial arts and the multiverse, directed by Daniel Kwan.
The movielovers attending the Citizen Ashe screening (directed by Rex Miller and Sam Pollard), scheduled for Sunday, June 19, at 5:45 pm, at Cinema Victoria, will also have a special meeting. They will exclusively watch a work in progress version of the documentary Nasty, made by Tudor Giurgiu, the President of the festival. Special guest at the event will be none other than the legendary Romanian tennis player Ilie Năstase, whose life and career are the subject of this film.
TIFF Lounge, the new meeting space arranged in Unirii Square, will become this year the main attraction for the spectators interested in discovering stories behind the rooms. TIFF Talks – the series of meetings with professionals from the world of film, will give moviegoers the chance to participate every day in conversations with important personalities invited to the festival, on topics inspired by the most applauded but also the most intriguing films from TIFF 2022 In a less formal atmosphere, the InspiraTIFF series will delight the devourers of remarkable stories, invited every day to enter into dialogue with the artists present in Cluj on the occasion of the festival. Access to TIFF Lounge events will be free of charge, subject to availability.