Ioana Mischie’s Catane opens the South East European Film Festival in Los Angeles, delivering a playful, fairy-tale mood that critics have described as poetic, humorous and satirical.
Set in a remote Romanian mountain village, the story follows twin sisters who braid their hair into a single strand and share a sweater to appear conjoined—a quirk tied to a larger conspiracy in which locals claim disabilities to access benefits. Officials in Bucharest soon wonder whether the claims hold up and travel to investigate.
As Mischie’s feature debut, Catane has been hailed as a delicate blend of whimsy and social observation. The filmmaker recalls an arduous path to funding—nearly a decade of persistence—before she could preserve the vision she imagined rather than turning it into drama.
Mischie spent years scouting for a village that felt authentic and bucolic enough to carry the film’s mood. She ultimately shot in the Apuseni Mountains in Transylvania, working with a strong Romanian cast and a seasoned casting director to bring the characters to life. The project’s writing has earned recognition at Berlinale Talents and the Sundance Workshop, and it later won Best Script at Manaki Script Lab and Fest Pitching Forum in Portugal.
Composer Emiliano Mazzenga collaborated closely with Mischie, crafting a score that threads rustic textures with a touch of magic. He describes aiming for a soundscape that lets the inspectors feel like adventurers rather than mere officials, aligning with the film’s fairy-tale spirit.
Catane has already played theatrically in Romania to strong, moving responses. Mischie says a U.S. release remains a dream; for now, the film continues to circle festivals for another year or so as a potential distributor is sought. SEEfest in Los Angeles runs through May 6.
Source: Original article
