The 25th edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival closed in the city of Cluj-Napoca with a winners list that highlighted emerging filmmakers, Romanian cinema and key European co-productions.
Lionel, directed by Carlos Saiz, won the Transilvania Trophy at the 25th edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival, closing an anniversary edition that once again positioned Cluj-Napoca as one of the key regional stages for emerging filmmakers, European co-productions and Romanian cinema.
Held from June 12 to 21, TIFF.25 brought together international competition titles, Romanian premieres, documentary and hybrid cinema, audience-driven discoveries and a growing industry platform. The winners list reflected the festival’s long-standing identity: a place where first and second features can gain real visibility, while local and regional projects connect with a wider professional ecosystem.
Saiz’s Lionel, a Spain-France production, received the festival’s top prize and its €10,000 award, offered by Banca Transilvania. Built around a young man and his estranged father on a road trip that turns into a painful attempt at reconciliation, the film leaves Cluj with a stronger international profile. Spanish distributor Sideral Cinema handles the film in Spain, while sales company Sideral Cinema also represents it internationally.
Another major prize went to Titanic Ocean, directed by Konstantina Kotzamani, which received the Best Director Award. Set in Japan and centered on teenage girls training to become professional mermaids, the Greece-Germany-Romania-France-Spain co-production brought one of the competition’s most distinctive visual worlds to TIFF. Sales company Paradise City Sales handles the film internationally, while Romanian co-producer deFilm gives the award an additional local industry angle.
A different kind of intensity shaped Our Father, directed by Goran Stanković, which won the Special Jury Award. The Serbia-Croatia-Italy-North Macedonia-Montenegro-Bosnia and Herzegovina co-production explores addiction, faith, authority and control through the story of a man entering a strict religious rehabilitation community. Sales company Split Screen handles the film internationally, with distributor Duplicato Media also attached to the title.
Recognition for acting went to the ensemble of Truly Naked, directed by Muriel d’Ansembourg. Caolán O’Gorman, Andrew Howard, Alessa Savage and Safiya Benaddi shared the Best Performance Award for the Netherlands-Belgium-France co-production, which also received the Ecumenical Jury Award. Sales company M-Appeal handles international sales, while French distributor Shellac handles the film in France.
Memory Leads the What’s Up, Doc? Winners
In What’s Up, Doc?, TIFF’s section for documentary and hybrid cinema, the main award went to Memory, directed by Vladlena Sandu. The France-Netherlands production revisits Sandu’s childhood during the Chechen War, transforming personal memory, trauma and displacement into a formally ambitious autobiographical work.
Sales company Loco Films represents the film internationally, while Dutch distributor Cinema Delicatessen handles the title in the Netherlands. Its win reinforces TIFF’s interest in nonfiction cinema that moves beyond traditional documentary language and enters more personal, cinematic territory.
A Special Mention in the same section went to Variations on a Theme, directed by Jason Jacobs and Devon Delmar. The South Africa-Netherlands-Qatar production follows an elderly goat herder in Namaqualand, adding another intimate, geographically specific story to a section built around hybrid forms and strong authorial perspectives.
Romanian Days Keeps the Local Industry in Focus
Romanian Film Days, one of TIFF’s central pillars, awarded Best Feature Film to Y, directed by Maria Popistașu and Alex Baciu. The prize, worth €2,000 and offered by DACIN SARA, places the film among the key Romanian titles emerging from this year’s edition.
For the Best Debut Award, the jury chose Back and Forth, directed by Cristian Bota. The prize, worth €1,500 and offered by Conceptual Lab by Theo Nissim, brings extra visibility to a first feature with a cast that includes Adrian Titieni, Dana Rogoz, Crina Semciuc and Bota himself.
Romanian Days also gave a Special Mention to The Circle, directed by Valeriu Andriuță, a Romania-Moldova production. In the short-film competition, County Captain, directed by Dan Panaet, won Best Romanian Short Film, with the award including €1,500 and €5,000 in services from CutareFilm.
Critics also placed Romanian cinema in the spotlight. The FIPRESCI Award, presented by the International Federation of Film Critics to a title from Romanian Film Days, went to Don’t Let Me Die, directed by Andrei Epure. Across features, debuts, shorts and critics’ prizes, the section confirmed TIFF’s role as both a showcase for Romanian cinema and a useful indicator of where the local industry is heading.
Audience and Parallel Jury Awards
Festivalgoers chose It Feels Like Home, directed by Gábor Holtai, for the Audience Award, worth €2,000 and offered by Mastercard. The Hungarian film stood out in the Official Competition, giving TIFF.25 a public-facing winner alongside the jury’s top choice, Lionel.
Among Romanian titles, the Vodafone Hearts’ Award for Most Popular Romanian Film went to Wild Delta, directed by Dan Dinu. The prize points to the continuing audience appeal of Romanian nonfiction, especially when it connects local landscapes, identity and environmental storytelling.
Younger viewers awarded the Youth Award / TEEN Spirit Award to Los Domingos, directed by Alauda Ruiz de Azúa. The Spain-France production explores faith, family and personal freedom through the story of a teenager considering entering a cloistered convent. Sales company Le Pacte represents the film internationally and also handles French distribution, while Benelux distributor Cherry Pickers handles the title in that market.
Further parallel jury prizes went to Edges, directed by Roberta Șerban, which received the SIGNIS Award for a Romanian short, and No One Will Know / Le Roi Soleil, directed by Vincent Maël Cardona, which won the Young Francophone Jury Award.
Industry Awards Point to What Comes Next
TIFF.25 also highlighted its industry pipeline, with awards for projects in development, series concepts and works in progress. In Transilvania Pitch Stop, the Grand Prize offered by Chainsaw Europe, a post-production company, went to Fathers, directed by Martin Iliev, the film’s director, and produced by Angel Ivanov, the project’s producer, through Handplayed, a Bulgarian production company.
The TPS Development Award offered by Avanpost, a Romanian post-production studio, went to Times New Roman, directed by Philip Sotnychenko, the project’s director, and produced by Valeria Sochyvets, producer at Contemporary Ukrainian Cinema, together with Sashko Chubko, producer attached to the project, and Viatel, a Ukrainian production company.
The CNC Moldova Award went to Another Story About My Son, directed by Adrian Silișteanu, Romanian filmmaker and cinematographer, and produced by Iriana Adnana, producer at Domestic Film, together with Maya Vitkova Kosev, Bulgarian producer and filmmaker, through Viktoria World Sales and Distribution, her production and sales company.
The Luno Award went to Decebal’s Wedding, directed by Matei Lucaci-Grünberg, the project’s director, and produced by Gabriela Suciu, producer at Atelier de Film, a Bucharest-based production company. In Drama Room, Stay in School!, written by Rodica Dominteanu, the project’s screenwriter, won the Best Series Project Award, which includes a development agreement with PRO TV, the Romanian commercial broadcaster.
Two Transilvania HBO Awards, each worth €30,000, went to Works in Progress projects: The Fear’s Artist, directed by Cristi Iftime, the film’s director, and produced by Marian Crișan, producer at Rova Film; and We Won’t Get Old Together, directed by Marius Olteanu, the film’s director, and produced by Oana Giurgiu, producer at Point Film.
TIFF.25 also honored several major cultural figures. Corneliu Porumboiu, Romanian filmmaker, received the TIFF.25 Trophy; Roman Gutek, Polish producer, distributor and festival founder, received the Janovics Jenő Award; Anda Onesa, Romanian actress, received the Excellence Award; and Ornella Muti, Italian actress, was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
With Lionel winning the Transilvania Trophy and titles such as Titanic Ocean, Our Father, Memory, Truly Naked and the Romanian Days winners gaining new visibility, TIFF.25 confirmed its role as a regional launchpad for films moving between festival recognition, audience response and industry circulation.
