“The Magic Mountain” animation documentary by Anca Damian and “Box” feature film directed by Florin Serban are competing in the official competition of the 50th edition of Karlovy Vary film festival due in the Czech Republic July 3-11.
“The world is mine”, another Romanian film directed by Nicolae Constantin Tanase is racing for the trophy of the “East of the West” section.
The Karlovy Vary official competition rejoins seven world premieres among which there are six most recent international films directed by filmmakers such as Anca Damian and Florin Serban.
Anca Damian is one of the two female directors in the official competitions, next to Eva Neymann (“Song of Songs”).
“The Magic Mountain” is a Romanian-French-Polish production and is part of a trilogy on heroism, along with “Crulic –the path to beyond” animated biographical film released in 2011, which tells the story of a Romanian inmate who dies in Poland’s prison while on hunger strike. The film was awarded 25 prizes and took part in an impressive number of foreign film festivals.
Made in a postmodern style, comprising various visual techniques, paper offcuts, animation, photography and film, “The Magic Mountain” is telling the real story of Polish Adam Jacek Winkler, politically refuged to Paris. His story is of “a roving knight”, a kind of “Don Quijote of the 20th century” who wants to change the world, even at the risk of jeopardizing his own life.
As for the other Romanian director Florin Serban, he brings a drama this time, after the huge success of his previous production “If I want to whistle, I whistle”. “Box” is a French-German-Romanian production, presenting the story of a talented 19-year-old boxer and of a gifted theater actress, also a mother who is searching for her lost balance.
Serban’s previous success, “If I want to whistle, I whistle” was awarded the Silver Bear at Berlin Festival in 2010.