Cosmina Stratan, short-listed for the Berlinale’s Shooting Stars Programme

Actress Cosmina Stratan has been short-listed for “Shooting Stars”, a programme addressing Europe’s young talents. Shooting Stars is held between February 8th and 10th as part of the Berlin International Film Festival. Now that she has been short-listed, Cosmina Stratan will be joining such high profile actors as Rachel Weisz, Daniel Craig, Carey Mulligan, Melanie Laurent, for whom Shooting Stars was a shortcut to fame. There are also other young Romanian actors, such as Ana Ularu, Dragos Bucur, Maria Popistasu and Ada Condeescu who in previous years were short-listed for the Shooting Stars programme, which Cosmina Stratan sees as a great opportunity.

Corina Sabău, 15.02.2014, 14:00

We recall that at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival Cosmina jointly with her partner in the movie Cristina Flutur scooped the best leading actress award for her role in Cristian Mungiu’s “Beyond the Hills”. The film’s screenplay also grabbed the award for best screenplay in Cannes and is inspired form Tatiana Niculescu Bran’s “Deadly Confession” based on a true story. In 2005, a 23-year old girl died in Valsui County’s Tanacu Monastery during an exorcism ritual, with the priest and four nuns taking part in it. Cristian Mungiu’ s production tells the tale of two young girls, Alina (Cristina Flutur) and Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) who had grown up together in an orphanage and later reunite in an isolated Romanian monastery. Alina dreams of settling in Germany, where Voichita would join her. However, Voichita is strongly attached to the monastic way of life.

Although two years have passed since the film was launched, Cosmina Stratan still feels attached to her character and to the time she spent on set with the shooting crew.

”I hardly realized how these two years have passed. At wintertime I always think of the film, as most of the scenes were shot in winter. Anyhow, the film is always on my mind. ‘Beyond the Hills’ has so far remained my most important landmark and it’s highly likely to remain so. It means a lot to me, it is my first feature film, offering me the chance to work with Cristian Mungiu. I don’t think there will ever be any other project which I will hold just as dear as this one. And I don’t know if I will ever repeat this performance again”.

Cosmina Stratan was simply taken aback by the best performance award she received in Cannes. She did not expect the award to go to her. She told us more about her being short-listed for the Shooting Stars programme and about her forthcoming film.

“The difference between my participation in Cannes and the one I had in Berlin is that with Shooting Starts I had a lot of time on my hands to think and have a strong desire to be short-listed. Any actor aspires to be part of that program alongside filmmaking professionals, agents, casting directors, producers. My next film will be shot in Berlin this spring. It is the debut feature of a German director. I can’t tell you the title yet, and I don’t think there has been any final decision on the title. I play the lead role.“

If quite a few of the actors want to make a name for themselves featuring in a super-production, Cosmina Stratan is mainly keen on screenplay, on a story. The screenplay and the fact that filmmaker Cristian Mungiu holds her in high esteem prompted Cosmina to feature in “Beyond the Hills.”

“I believe it’s the story I’m mostly interested in, the story and the characters. And while I do the casting, I’m also keen on developing a relationship with the director, since it is crucial for both of us to be on the same wavelength. And you get the hang of it right from the start. These are the elements I focus on when I pick up a film or when I’m being presented with an offer. It’s not the budget that I have in mind, nor am I keen on other aspects having to do with promotion or visibility, if I can find all the things I am interested in, it’s easier for me to get involved.“

Yet Cosmina did not make a name for herself in the filmmaking industry alone. Theatre draws her in too, being one of the reasons why she does not want to live Romania. Speaking again is Cosmina Stratan.

“I don’t want to leave the country for good. Leaving Romania is not an option for me, as I also want to feature on stage. And it seems to me it is impossible to be able to make it outside Romania. It’s rather hard to speak another language on stage.“

Now in its 17th edition, the Shooting Stars program is jointly organized by the European Film Promotion (EFP) and the EFP member organizations, among which the Romanian Film Promotion Association. “Shooting Stars” is set to promote Europe’s most talented young actors at international level, for whom the program facilitates the encounter with leading names in the filmmaking industry (great actors, directors, famous producers, casting directors).