Cristian Mungiu, Best Director at Cannes Film Festival

Romanian director Cristian Mungiu and French director Olivier Assayas shared the Best Director Award at Cannes Film Festival’s 69th edition on Sunday. Mr. Mungiu was awarded for his latest “Baccalaureat / Graduation” movie along with Mr. Assayas’ „Personal Shopper”. „Graduation” tells the story of a father greasing the system in order to ensure his daughter’s chances to get a scholarship from a British university after graduating from high school. Starring Adrian Titieni and Maria Drăguş, Mr. Mungiu’s film is „an intricate, deeply intelligent film, and a bleak picture of a state of national depression in Romania, where the 90s generation hoped they would have a chance to start again”, according to British daily „The Guardian”. It may seem that Mr. Mungiu is a Cannes Festival favourite as he is also the winner of a Palme d’Or for his hugely acclaimed „4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days” before receiving a prize as best screenwriter for his „Beyond the Hills” always at Cannes in 2012 when the Best Actress Award went ex-aequo to the films’ leading actresses Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan. In the „Un Certain Regard” section, „Dogs”, the first feature from Romanian helmer Bogdan Mirică, received the Film Critics’ Award known as FIPRESCI.