“the spectatorship wants to see stories again and not your opinion as a filmmaker and no complicated metaphorical things about your vision.  So we should go back to telling very personal stories. I think it helps”

Born in 1968 in Iasi Romania to a doctor father, Cristian Mungiu studied English and American literature, spending some time in Edinburgh in the course of this.   He first worked as a teacher and journalist in radio and TV, and published several short stories.  In 1994 he decided on a career in film and attended Bucharest Film School whilst working as an assistant director on some fifteen overseas films filmed in Romania.   He also directed several prize-winning shorts.   Occident (West) was his first feature film in 2002.  He co-founded Mobra films in 2003.