Romanian cinema: Sebastian Mihăilescu’s Mammalia has world premiere at Berlin Film Festival

The surrealist drama Mammalia, directed by Sebastian Mihăilescu, will have its world premiere at the 73rd edition of the Berlin International Film Festival - Berlinale. The Romania/Poland/Germany co-production was selected in the event's Forum section.

The 2023 edition of the Berlin International Film Festival is scheduled for February 16-26.

Mammalia is a surreal journey through the crisis of masculinity and combines drama with mystery and comedy.

The film follows Camil, a 39-year-old man who embarks on a dreamlike journey where the mundane and the fantastic intertwine. With the loss of control over his job, social status and love relationship, he ventures on a quest that makes him question his identity and masculinity. Following his partner, he ends up in a bizarre community with disturbing rituals, where he eventually experiences a tragicomic reversal of roles.

"Mammalia is an incisive exploration of the male perspective on life and the struggle against surrendering to overwhelming experiences, against passivity, against the fear of losing control and balance. With this film, I am trying to move away from realism and naturalism, away from words and closer to images, to deconstruct the narrative and archetype of the male hero. Because I think that in art, it is more important to ask the right questions than to give ready-made answers," says director Sebastian Mihăilescu.

The cast includes István Téglás, Mălina Manovici, Denisa Nicolae, Steliana Bălăcianu, Rolando Matsangos, Mirela Crețan, Andreea Gheorghe, Mircea Bujoreanu, Marian Pîrvu, Dan Zarug Mihai, and Elena Chingălată.

Sebastian Mihăilescu is a screenwriter, director and producer. After obtaining a bachelor's degree in computer science, he attended bachelor's and master's courses in film directing at the National University of Theater and Cinematography "I. L. Caragiale" from Bucharest. He made his directorial debut in 2012 with the short documentary Titza, which was followed by three short fiction productions.

The documentary feature You Are Ceauşescu to Me, made by Sebastian Mihăilescu in 2021, was awarded the Best Central and Eastern European Film Award and the Best Picture Award at the Ji.hlava IFF, the New Talent Award at the DocLisboa Festival, and was named the best documentary in the What's Up Doc competition, at Transilvania IFF.

(Photo source: PR)