Best Romanian documentary movies
A curated collection of popular documentary movies from Romania.
Romanian (2014)
Romanian (2014)
A fantastic short documentary that explores an event that is staged in a cave in one of the oldest forests in Romania. The premise of the film - that people are bored and need something to do or perform is beside the point - there are people in Romania who will move an entire orchestra into a cave in the forest and thousands of people will arrive to watch a classical performance there. Breathtaking and fun at the same time.
Nunți muzici și casete video (2008)
Nunți muzici și casete video (2008)
A "behind-the-scenes" insight of the Romanian wedding industry, with cameramen, photographers and singers from all around the country in the spotlight. Their life stories, their editing styles, their hands-on-approach know-how and, of course, their performances at weddings, mix up in a shortcut-style film. George Stirbat, the 30-something one-man-show singer from the small town of Onesti returned home after a mini-Broadway career and Petru Manici, the coal mine electrician from the mining town of Petrosani, are just two of the most interesting characters the film follows in their quest to achieve perfection for the bride's and groom's memories. Something to remember.
TWST / Things We Said Today (2025)
TWST / Things We Said Today (2025)
A time capsule of New York City between August 13-15, 1965, framed by the Beatles’ arrival in the city and their first concert at Shea Stadium. The film consists exclusively of archive material from the period (ABC, CBS, NBC), 8mm home movies and images of the concert, which was recorded with fourteen 35mm cameras. Four teenagers are sent on a trip through time and inserted in the archive material by means of animation.
The Shukar Collective Project (0)
The Shukar Collective Project (0)
Shukar Collective play bear tamer music using spoons, wooden barrels or daraboukas, whilst a couple of DJs add layer after layer of urban sound over this traditional music. It is this kind of eclectic environment that best describes what the documentary deals with: culture contact.
The Trail of Dracula (2013)
The Trail of Dracula (2013)
Diabolical. Seductive. Immortal. Vampires have been an icon of evil in folklore and popular culture for more than three centuries, yet only one name still personifies the ultimate aristocrat of bloodlust. Now join the world’s foremost experts on Dracula – including academics, authors and horror historians – as they explore the untold story of the Transylvanian Count, from the legend of Vlad The Impaler and Bram Stoker’s celebrated novel through its landmark stage productions and classic movie adaptations.
30 Years of Democracy (2019)
30 Years of Democracy (2019)
Two journalists born in the mid '80s decide to take a look back at how their country changed in the last 30 years since the fall of communism. The end product is a documentary containing footage of political events and historical milestones significant to Romania accompanied by a narrator's voice walking the viewer through the events, and also interviews with Romanian politicians and other influential public figures sharing their thoughts and their different views on those events.
The Marshal's Two Executions (2018)
The Marshal's Two Executions (2018)
The film confronts two different views of the execution of General Ion Antonescu, Romania's leader during the Second World War.
The Hunt for Transylvanian Gold (2017)
The Hunt for Transylvanian Gold (2017)
The mysterious appearance of massive golden bracelets in int'l antiquarian circles uncovers an inside story of the looting of a 2000 yr-old Transylvanian golden-hoard. Police investigations...
Carol I (2009)
Carol I (2009)
The last days of the first Romanian king, Carol I of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, and the tough decisions he had to make in the summer of 1914 in order to please both Romanian Parliament and his relatives from the German Empire.
The Second Game (2014)
The Second Game (2014)
A deceptively simple set-up: the director and his father watch a 1988 football match which the father refereed, their commentary accompanying the original television images in real time. A Bucharest derby between the country’s leading teams, Dinamo and Steaua, taking place in heavy snow, one year before the revolution that toppled Ceaușescu.
The Exit of the Trains (2020)
The Exit of the Trains (2020)
A film composed entirely of archival photographs and documents related to the Iași Pogrom of June 1941. The first part of the film consists of photographs of the victims, accompanied by statements and testimonies about their fate. The second part, shorter, is a montage of photos of the pogrom itself.
Metrobranding (2010)
Metrobranding (2010)
While people in Western Europe were used to choose between hundreds of brands, the communist Romanian used to have a different experience: all our life we lived with only one brand for each basic product. Imagine the importance that this 'mono-brands' could acquire for the lives of those who made them and for the lives of those who consumed them. A love story between man and object.
Three days 'till Christmas (2012)
Three days 'till Christmas (2012)
Historical Docudrama, which describes accurately - based on evidence, documents, reconstructions and archive footage - the last days of life spouses Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu. Main performers, Victoria Cocias (Elena Ceausescu) and Constantin Cojocaru (Nicolae Ceausescu).
The Chalice. Of Sons and Daughters (2022)
The Chalice. Of Sons and Daughters (2022)
Traditional Roma-communities of Romania are culturally rich communities, ruled with complicated rituals and customs. Marriage is maybe the most set in stone such custom, with everything about it being under very strict community control. What keeps everyone alert is Roma marriage’s highest stake: fertility and conceiving boys.
Acasă, My Home (2020)
Acasă, My Home (2020)
In the wilderness of the Bucharest Delta, nine children and their parents lived in perfect harmony with nature for 20 years – until they are chased out and forced to adapt to life in the big city.
Nasty (2024)
Nasty (2024)
1972 was a turning point in Ilie Nastase's career: he won his first US Open, while also reaching both Wimbledon and Davis Cup finals. Moving back and forth in time and featuring amazing archive footage and exclusive interviews with top athletes, the documentary explores Nastase's highs and lows, the controversies that surrounded him and the enduring impact he has had on the world of tennis. Lovable, charming and generous, yet temperamental, arrogant and obscene, Mr. Nice'n'Nasty disrupted the old-fashioned etiquette of the sport in the 70s thus becoming its first rebel rock star.
Infinite Football (2018)
Infinite Football (2018)
“Last autumn, a good childhood friend of mine, Florin, told me that his brother, Laurentiu, invented a new sport by changing the rules of football. One month later I went to Vaslui, my hometown, with a small film crew in order to learn more about this new sport...”
The Distance Between Me and Me (2019)
The Distance Between Me and Me (2019)
Poet, musician, intellectual, and committed communist Nina Cassian wrestled for decades with the central contradiction of her life: how to reconcile her artistic ideals with the strict censorship imposed by Romania’s Communist Party — a tension that put her at odds with the totalitarian Ceaușescu regime and eventually led to her exile. Interweaving archival footage with firsthand interviews, this thought-provoking documentary illuminates the complex relationships between art, politics, and personal truths.
Cabbage, Potatoes and other Demons (2017)
Between Revolutions (2023)
Between Revolutions (2023)
A semi-fictional correspondence between two women: one goes to Iran in 1979 to topple the Shah; the other experiences the onerous years of Ceaușescu’s Romania. Their biographies run in parallel via images of everyday life and videograms of revolution.
The Bridge (2014)
The Bridge (2014)
A funeral procession pushes across the florid stillness of a deserted Romanian village.
The King's War (2016)
The King's War (2016)
Few know what happened, in fact, on August 23, 1944, and who were the main actors of change. Words like "coup", "war" and "communists" are used often in the same sentence, without knowing anything about the courage that a king nor 23 had when it was across Hitler's plan.
Eight Postcards from Utopia (2024)
Eight Postcards from Utopia (2024)
A found-footage documentary assembled exclusively out of post-socialist Romanian advertisements, this brings together these documents of Romania’s long transition period, they are made to speak about life, love and death, about the body and human frailty, about nature and the supernatural, about recent history, and, of course, about socialism and capitalism.
The World According to Ion B. (2009)
The World According to Ion B. (2009)
The fascinating portrait of Ion Bârlàdeanu. The touching and inspiring story of a man who literally lived in the gutter for 20 years - and in the meantime managed to create paintings and collages which are now exhibited alongside works by Andy Warhol or Marcel Duchamp.
Everything Will Not Be Fine (2020)
Everything Will Not Be Fine (2020)
At the end of a long-term relationship, a half-blind director, born in 1986, whose mother blames his illness on the Chernobyl nuclear accident, leaves his life in Romania behind and embarks on a journey out of the desire to find and other people affected by the same disaster. He falls in love with a young woman from Ukraine and his life changes completely.