Coronavirus pandemic inspires Romanian online productions

While at home during the coronavirus lockdown, several Romanian filmmakers and actors did not stop working but moved online to film TV series or feature films.

Romanian director Dan Chișu came up the Nine Stories of Love and Hate in Isolation / Nouă povești de dragoste și ură in izolare.

The film follows a film director, played by Chișu himself, as he is trying to convince several actors to film themselves at home while acting the parts he has written for them.

The cast includes Adrian Titieni, Emanuel Pârvu, Andrei Huţuleac, Judith State, Corina Moise, Ilona Brezoianu, Tudor Istodor şi Raluca Aprodu, Alexandru Bogdan, Codin Maticiuc, Silvana Mihai, Diana Cavallioti, Alex Pavel, Constantin Dogioiu, Ana Radu, Elena Voineag, Cătălina Mihai and Ana Pandeli.

The actors shot the film, using their mobile phones. Within two days of the launch, the film reached some 15,000 views on YouTube and some 10,000 on Facebook. At the end of May, it had almost 68,000 views.

Chişu explained that he started writing for the new production as he was disappointed that the launch of his film "5 minutes" was postponed because of the lockdown measures introduced by the authorities. He got in touch with the actors, sent them the stores and every one of them filmed themselves.

"The actors were their directors, and I could picture them after seeing a scene sent through WhatsApp how they would say 'I'll do it the way I know best; anyway, he's not here and can't interrupt the scene'," the filmmaker explained, quoted by News.ro.

He also explained that what he did "was not directing." He offered opinions on the scenes the actors filmed and image director Adrian Silişteanu would talk to the actors before the filming and offer suggestions on how to position the phones or introduce props.

Meanwhile, the sitcom Debatable/Discutabil also tackles the Covid-19 crisis and how it changed everyone's way of life. It premiered on YouTube, where all of its 12 parts can be watched for free.

It stars Șerban Pavlu, Vlad Zamfirescu, Marius Manole, Carmen Tănase, Medeea Marinescu, Nadiana Sălăgean, Kana Hashimoto, and very popular Romanian actors Maia Morgenstern and Horațiu Mălăele featured as guests on two episodes.

The show was filmed while complying with all the lockdown restrictions imposed by the authorities. The actors received the script and rehearsed online.