(Los Angeles, May 23, 2007) – At a special ceremony held yesterday in Los Angeles, the first Audience Choice Award of the just concluded South East European Film Festival was presented to the honorable Catalin Ghenea, Consul General of Romania. Romanian film The Way I Spent the End of the World, directed by Catalin Mitulescu, got a perfect 4.5 score from the festival’s audience.
The award, presented by the director of the festival, Vera Mijojlic, is yet another recognition for Romanian cinema which continues to dazzle the audiences and critics around the world. Winner of Best Actress award for Dorotheea Petre at Cannes Film Festival’s “Un Certain Regard” in 2006, “The Way I Spent the End of the World” is a warm-hearted coming-of-age story of two siblings making the most of it in the last months of Ceausescu’s regime in Romania. Brilliantly acted by the pitch-perfect Dorotheea Petre (“Ryna”), and young boy Timotei Duma, the film follows them through the pains of first love and challenged loyalties.
At the ceremony Consul Ghenea was joined by Gail Kligman, director of the UCLA’s Center for European and Eurasian Studies. Professor Kligman is a world renowned author with expertise in Romanian cultural and gender studies.
Speaking on behalf of Cinema Without Borders, Bijan Tehrani announced a special feature of the magazine devoted exclusively to Romanian cinema.