We are proud to welcome back acclaimed actor Vlad Ivanov, who is appearing in three films at this year’s festival: in Familiar, In the Name of the Father and in his international breakthrough role in Cristian Mungiu’s Cannes-winning 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.

This year we’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of The Romanian Film Festival in London. Across five days we will screen a great selection of Romanian features, documentaries, and short films. All screenings will take place at Curzon Soho, one of London’s premier art house cinemas. You can watch the festival trailer here: https://vimeo.com/885701795 Don’t forget to pass it on.

Following the festival opening night screening of Familiar, Vlad will join us on stage to talk about his career, from his pivotal cameo in this film through to his work on the stage and screen, both at home and internationally. Hosted by film writer Ian Haydn Smith.

Thu 30 Nov 2023, 6pm, Curzon Soho
FAMILIAR (d. Călin Peter Netzer)
Followed by Q&A with actor Vlad Ivanov.
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/883938454

Sat 2 Dec 2023, 2pm, Curzon Soho
4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS (d. Cristian Mungiu)
The film is screening from a 35mm print and will be followed by an interview with actor Vlad Ivanov.

Sun 3 Dec 2023, 5.10pm, Curzon Soho – within the ROMANIAN SHORTS PROGRAMME:
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER (d. Vladimir Dembinski)
Preceded by introduction with actor Vlad Ivanov
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/883848949

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Vlad Ivanov burst onto UK and international screens as the ominous and deeply horrendous Mr Bebe, the backstreet abortionist in Cristian Mungiu’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. This was the opening salvo for what is now a huge collection of meaty roles.

One thing to know about Vlad Ivanov is that his talents have allowed him to embody the most outstanding mad, bad and dangerous to know characters in contemporary European cinema, amassing a portfolio of powerful negative portraits. With the same gusto, and the same deep understanding, he has brought an identical professionalism and method-like verisimilitude to all his roles, from corrupt policemen and priests to secret service chiefs, from oppressors, killers, and abusive bullies to heartless businessmen, aggressive fathers, and venal doctors, along with the focussed head of a space agency and a former cosmonaut (Infiniti – French TV series).

Whether his leading or supporting character is twisting and corrupting young minds, making informants out of them and forcing them to become part of the oppressive state apparatus (Metronom, Servants, One Step Behind the Seraphim), whether he is glibly explaining the meaning of a word with the aid of a dictionary in order to stifle any dreams of truth and justice (Police, Adjective), or whether he is doing stupid and dangerous things for love and money (The Whistlers), Vlad Ivanov creates real, three-dimensional, truly memorable identities, banishing even the hint of caricature.

You can find more about the festival screenings on our website: www.rofilmfest.com . There will be further updates as we near the start of the festival so do check the site regularly.

So, whether you want to see one or all the films in the festival, we look forward to seeing you at the Romanian Film Festival. In the meantime, check the website, follow us on Facebook and other social media, and spread the word…!