Occident

Cristian Mungiu's 1990s-set black comedy follows the interconnected lives of young Romanians aspiring to emigrate.

Luci and his girlfriend return to their apartment to find themselves evicted. Determined to get their joint lives back on track, he takes on a new job as a mascot for a beer company, spruiking their wares in a shopping centre.

His new colleague Mihaela has just been left at the altar. When her parents immediately start matchmaking, she protests. She might have found what she is looking for in Luci.

Curator’s note
The violent Romanian Revolution took place in December 1989, bringing an abrupt end to communism in the country, and the 90s was a period of enormous upheaval for Romania. Set loosely in this decade, Cristian Mungiu’s black comedy speaks to the collective ambitions to emigrate from Romania at the time. Insular prejudices feel tethered to these hurried desires. For one character, only the West will do, while another character's attitudes to the idea are plainly racist.

Occident made its world premiere at the 55th Cannes Film Festival in the Director’s Fortnight section, where it won the FIPRESCI Award. The film went on to become a box office hit in Romania.