Producer Anca Puiu describes the film as a "crime story from a new perspective." Viorel, a middle-aged man, starts the day with a bizzare feeling of anxiety. Without trying to understand its meanings, he let himself carried by the daily events and drives around Bucharest trying to cope with a growing sense of instability.
Cristi Puiu looked for the lead actor for five months, finally cast himself in the role and then passed the exams for a driving licence in order to play the character. Clara Vodă reprises her character from The Death of Mr Lăzărescu. The cast includes Valeria Seciu, Gelu Colceag, Luminiţa Gheorghiu (also from The Death of Mr Lăzărescu), Gigi Ifrim, Lucian Ifrim, and child actors Carmela Culda and Ileana Puiu. Viorel Sergovici is the DOP. The film is now almost 180 minutes in length.
Aurora is a production of the Romanian company Mandragora (www.mandragora.ro), in co-production with France's Société Parisienne de Production (www.thecopro.de), the Swiss company Bord Cadre Films (www.bordcadrefilms.com), and Germany's Essential Filmproduktion GmbH. The producers are Anca Puiu, Bobby Păunescu, Philippe Bober, Dan Wechsler and Susanne Marian.
The project has received the biggest grant from the National Centre for Cinema (www.cncinema.abt.ro) in 2008: 380,000 Euro. It received 250,000 Euro from Eurimages (www.coe.int/t/dg4/eurimages), and it also received the Grand Accord from France Cinema (www.artefrancecinema .visualnet.com) together with ZDF (www.zdf.de). The budget is 2 million Euro. The shooting took place in 70 locations and with almost 80 actors, between February and May 2009.
The local release of the film will likely be in fall 2010. Aurora is the second part of a six films project about Bucharest begun in 2005 with the acclaimed The Death of Mr Lăzărescu (Un Certain Regard Prize at Cannes). Coproduction Office(www.coproductionoffice.eu) is handling the international sales.
Production information
Mandragora
12 A, Docenţilor Street, ap. 3, Sector 1
Bucharest, Romania
Phone: +40 21 222.05.58
Fax: +40 21 222.05.57
Anamaria Puiu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Société Française de Coproduction
24 Rue Lamartine, 75009 Paris 9 (Paris)
Phone: +331.5602.6000
Fax: +331.5602.6001
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Bord Cadre Films
CP 5353 - 1211 Genève 11 - Suisse - Tel. / Fax : + 41 22 320 90 25 - Mob : + 41 79 411 93 87 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
C.P. 5353 - 1211, Geneve, Switzerland
Phone/Fax: +41.22.320.90.25
Mobile: +41.79.411.93.87
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Essential Filmproduktion GmbH
Mommsenstr.27
10629 Berlin
Phone: +49 30 32 77 78 79
Fax: +49 30 32 32091
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Credits
Director: Cristi Puiu
Script: Cristi Puiu
DOP: Viorel Sergovici
Cast: Cristi Puiu
Clara Vodă
Valeria Seciu
Gelu Colceag
Luminiţa Gheorghiu
Gigi Ifrim
Lucian Ifrim
Carmela Culda
Ileana Puiu
