Palme d'Or / Cristian Mungiu

Cristian Mungiu (born April 27, 1968, Iaşi), Romanian director, writer, producer.


Cristian Mungiu is the brother of political analyst Alina Mungiu-Pippidi. After studying English literature at the University of Iaşi, he worked for a few years as a teacher and as a journalist. After that, he enrolled at the University of Film in Bucharest to study film directing.


After graduating in 1998, Mungiu made several short films. In 2002, he debuted with his first feature film, Occident. Occident enjoyed critical success, winning prizes in several film festivals and being featured in Director’s Fortnight at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. In 2007 Mungiu wrote and directed his second feature, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. The film was received enthusiastically, attracting critical praise and being selected in the official competition at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, where it eventually won the coveted Palme d'Or for feature film, marking the first time that prize was awarded to a Romanian filmmaker. The film won also the Cinema Prize of the French National Education System and the FIPRESCI Prize at Cannes, the Best Director and Best Film awards at the 2007 European Film Awards, and other awards at several important film festivals.

Palme d'Or / Cristi Puiu

Cristi Puiu (born April 3, 1967), Romanian film director and screenwriter.


Puiu's first interest in art was painting and in 1992, he was admitted as a student at the Painting Department of École Superieure d'Arts Visuels in Geneva. After the first year he switched to film studies at the same school and graduated in 1996. After returning to Romania, Cristi Puiu started directing and writing his first films, generally enjoying critical success.

Cristi Puiu's debut as a director was in 2001 with the low budget road movie Stuff and Dough (Marfa şi Banii). The film received several awards in international film festivals and competed in the Quinzaines des Realisateurs section of the Cannes Film Festival. He continued with a short film, Cigarettes and Coffee (Un cartuş de Kent şi un pachet de cafea) (2004), which was awarded the Golden Bear and the UIP Prize for best short film at the 2004 Berlin International Film Festival.


His second film, The Death of Mr. Lăzărescu (Moartea domnului Lăzărescu) (2005), was a critical success, being awarded with Prix Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival. Year 2006 brought 47 prizes for his film, and a lot of nominees in American Critics Top 10 and in France also for magazines as Telerama and Les Inrockuptibles. (from Wikipedia)

Palme d'Or / Mircea Mureşan

Mircea Mureşan (born November 11, 1928, Sibiu) is a Romanian film director, writer and actor. He was vice president of the Association of Filmmakers (ACIN) between 1974-1989.


He has directed 24 films since 1961. His career began with novels adaptations, and it gradually shift towards comedy, with rare incursions in documentaries. Mureşan won Opera Prima, the prize for Best First Work at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival for the film Răscoala (The Uprising).

Palme d'Or / Ion Popescu-Gopo

Ion Popescu-Gopo (May 1, 1923, Bucharest – November 28, 1989, Bucharest), Romanian graphic artist, animator, writer, movie director and actor, prominent personality in the Romanian cinematography and the founder of the modern Romanian cartoon school.


His career started as a designer and cartoonist in 1939, publishing caricatures and editorial cartoons in newspapers. 1949 brought his debut in the film industry with "Punguţa cu doi bani" (Bag with two coins). Since 1950 he started working for Cinematographic Studio Bucharest in the animation department, that later broke into a separate animation studio, Animafilm. His most known cartoon character is a little black and white man sometimes referred to as "Gopo's Little Man" after his creator. Later in his life Popescu-Gopo confessed that he tried to start an "anti-Disney rebellion". Unable to surpass Disney's animation characters in color and beauty, Popescu-Gopo tried to be more profound in message and substance and simplify the form and techniques used. Unlike Disney's cartoon characters, Popescu-Gopo's cartoon characters were black and white, designed in simple lines.



His film "Scurtă Istorie" (A Brief History) won the Short Film Palme d'Or for best short film at Cannes Festival in 1957. The worldwide success achieved by A Brief History turned The Little Man into an iconic character, symbolizing the human race in its quest for knowledge and beauty. Ion Popescu-Gopo was to use it in another seven films. In many situations, The Little Man is shown holding a flower to his heart, which is taken to symbolize the humans' capacity and need for love.



The Gopo Awards are the national Romanian film awards. They are presented by the Association for Romanian Film Promotion and were established in 2007, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Gopo's Palme d'Or. The trophy is a sculpture by Romanian artist Adrian Ilfoveanu representing Gopo's Little Man.

Palme d'Or / Mirel Ilieşiu

Mirel Ilieşiu (October 18, 1923, Bucureşti - March 23, 1985, Târgu Mureş), Romanian director and writer. In 1969, his film Cântecele Renaşterii (Renaissance Songs), a documentary about the Madrigal Choir, won the Palme d'Or for Short Films and Technical Grand Prize - Special Mention at Cannes Festival.