Gipsy Queen, an Austrian–German co-production directed by Hüseyin Tabak, will be released in local cinemas on February 27.

The film supports a campaign promoting equal access to education and sports, aiming to "open a necessary and relevant discussion on inclusion and education."

Starring Alina Șerban in the lead role, the film tells the story of Ali, a mother who does everything in her power to provide her children with a better future. Hard work and the wish to protect her children’s future drive her to the limit, and boxing becomes the space where her fight takes a concrete shape.

Ali’s main adversary is played by professional boxer and champion Maria Lindberg, while her trainer is portrayed by German boxer Jürgen Blin.

For her performance in Gipsy Queen, Șerban won four Best Actress awards, including one at the German Actors Guild Awards.

"Although the main character is a Roma woman who leaves Romania, the story of Ali is profoundly universal. Ali can be any woman, mother, or anyone having to fight for those they love. At the same time, the film is important because it offers a rare and needed representation: a Roma woman seen with complexity, dignity, and strength, beyond stereotypes,” Alina Șerban said.

A graduate of the National University of Theatre and Film (UNATC) in Bucharest, New York University Tisch School of the Arts, and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, Șerban is an actress as well as a film and theater director. She is the first Roma artist to receive Romania’s Cultural Merit Order, Knight rank. She previously starred in Alone at My Wedding, directed by Marta Bergman, and Housekeeping for Beginners by Goran Stolevski. She is also the director of I Matter.

All proceeds from ticket sales within the Cinema City network will be directed to two placement centers that support children at risk of dropping out of school.

(Illustration: press release)

simona@romania-insider.com