“Unpredictable Flight” (Zbor imprevizibil), the first Romanian series filmed entirely in vertical format, was made available on TikTok this week. Users can watch the first five episodes for free and access the remaining episodes through a subscription.

The series, directed by Cristian Buje (director of successful series such as “Clanul” and “Vlad” for ProTV) and Mihai Bauman (who has directed productions for HBO and Antena 1), follows the emotional and professional life of a flight crew over the course of 32 short episodes. 

“Unpredictable Flight” was inspired by stories shared by Andreea Penca, a pilot at Dan Air, and other pilot friends. The show is designed specifically for viewing on mobile phones and condenses a story of love, tension, suspense, and inspirational moments into episodes lasting just 1–3 minutes. The cast includes Anca Dinicu, Denis Hanganu, Cristian Bota, Alina Pușcaș, Mara Codiță, and Alfredo Minea.

The story begins with Sandra (Anca Dinicu), who wakes up one morning in a hotel room next to David (Denis Hanganu), a man she does not know. She cannot remember how she got there, but she must rush to the airport, where a flight assignment has come up at the last minute. During that single round-trip flight, Sandra’s life is turned completely upside down.

“‘Unpredictable Flight’ was born from our desire, as filmmakers, to bring quality fiction to Romanian social media channels. We know this is a new format, especially for Romania, but we believe our audience deserves to stay up to date with international trends and receive stories of the same standard. Although it was made on a limited budget, we worked incredibly hard to ensure that this would not be noticeable,” said Cristian Buje and Mihai Bauman.

The show is in line with a global trend of “vertical dramas,” short series designed exclusively for smartphone screens and quick consumption on social media platforms. The format is already popular with international audiences. 

“Unpredictable Flight” was filmed aboard one of Dan Air’s aircraft. The airline agreed to support the production, not as an advertisement, but as a credible fictional story about a flight crew observed during a single round-trip journey. The production team benefited from full access to the aircraft, real uniforms, authentic procedures, and training provided by aviation professionals, as well as support from Bacău Airport, where the aircraft is based, allowing filming under real working conditions.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: press release)