Marius Olteanu

We Won’t Get Old Together

Caught in between two relationships and suspected of having a terminal condition, an architect is forced to arrange the burial of a young man he has never met, only to realize that his own life needs to be rebuilt from the ground up.

SYNOPSIS

Summer. MIHNEA (40) leaves the hospital to meet GABI, a man of the same age, his boyfriend. They barely talk about the medical results and MIHNEA's unemployment. Later, MIHNEA heads to the apartment of a younger and fitter man, ALEX. They engage in sexual activity, and in the middle of the night, they are awakened by a call - ADI, ALEX's best friend, has died of AIDS. They rush to ADI's apartment, crowded with policemen and paramedics, with ADI's lifeless body lying on the floor. Under the pressure of time, heat, suspicions, and a legal void, MIHNEA must navigate dealings with the authorities to obtain permission for ADI's burial. After the body is taken care of, MIHNEA confronts ALEX about his infidelity and later confronts GABI about his emotionally distant behaviour and contentment with an unsatisfying life in the wrong country. Upon returning home and fearing the worst about his medical tests, MIHNEA envisions ADI's funeral as a disco resurrection, a symbolic retaliation against the harsh realities that seldom align with one's hopes. As a result, he decides to abandon everything and hastily makes his way to the airport.

DIRECTOR/WRITER
Marius Olteanu

PRODUCER
Oana Giurgiu

PRODUCTION COMPANY
Point Films

COUNTRY
Romania

Marius Olteanu

MARIUS OLTEANU (1979) is a writer-director hailing from Bucharest. His feature debut, MONSTERS (2019), had its premiere at Berlinale Forum 2019, where it received The Tagesspiegel Audience Award. The film went on to be showcased at over 50 international festivals, earning accolades such as Best Film at Sofia IFF, Best Debut at Goa IFF, and Best Romanian Debut at TIFF. Olteanu's work delves into the depths beyond the surface of perfection, exploring the human struggle with personal limits. In addition to his film career, Olteanu is a published photographer and an accomplished advertising director, having directed over 300 commercials.

We have been working on the project WE WON'T GET OLD TOGETHER for quite some time. This film and its subject have their roots in a period when reality teetered on the edge of collapse, presenting an insurmountable problem. To summarize this undertaking concisely, I would say that WE WON'T GET OLD TOGETHER is a two-hour cinematic farewell, compressed from a 24-hour-long goodbye letter prompted by death and fear. It encompasses the desperate search for a reason to persist. The story unfolds during the outbreak of Covid-19 in the summer of 2020, when the world seemed smaller and more terrifying. Why the need to tell this story? Because it delves into the struggles of growing up, facing mortality, reevaluating values, and the necessity of distancing oneself from reality to gain a better understanding. It explores compromises, unfulfilled dreams, cowardice, and fear, all while yearning for safety and love in a crumbling world. It is the story of MIHNEA, a man whose dreams can no longer be constructed from the shattered remnants of others' broken dreams. MIHNEA embarks on a complicated journey that we must bring to life on screen with sensitivity and compassion. WE WON'T GET OLD TOGETHER is a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences, blending reality and imagination. This allows for a visually intricate development without limitations. In this endeavour, delving deeply into the character's logic intertwines with discovering new ways to visually express that logic. I believe this project tackles relationships and psychological themes (love, death, sexuality, health, and self-acceptance, among others) in a profound and empathetic manner. It holds the potential to become an intense psychological drama with moments of absurdity and comedy.


DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

Oana Giurgiu

OANA GIURGIU is a graduate in law and journalism. She began her career by directing television documentaries before venturing into the film industry. She worked on acclaimed films such as Cristi Puiu's Cannes Un Certain Regard winner, THE DEATH OF MR. LĂZĂRESCU (2005), and Kornél Mundruczó's Cannes FIPRESCI winner, DELTA (2008). As a producer, she has collaborated on various projects, including Tudor Giurgiu's films: LOVESICK (2006), OF SNAILS AND MEN (2012), WHY ME? (2015), and Libertate (in post-production). She also produced Peter Strickland's KATALIN VARGA (2009), which won the Silver Bear and was named European Discovery of the Year at the European Film Academy Awards, as well as Cristi Puiu's SIERANEVADA (2016). Oana Giurgiu has co-produced Hungarian titles such as EDEN, directed by Agnes Kocsis (2020), and SPIRAL (2020), directed by Cecilia Felmeri, along with the Slovak film THE SERVANTS (2020), directed by Ivan Ostrochovsky, and the Turkish film BEFORE TWO DAWNS (2021), directed by Selman Nacar. She produced MOROMETE FAMILY: ON THE EDGE OF TIME (2018), the highest-grossing Romanian film in recent years, which received ten Gopo Awards in 2019. Oana Giurgiu made her directorial debut with the feature-length historical documentary ALIYAH DADA (2015), which was screened at Astra Sibiu, Jerusalem Jewish International Film Festival, and other Jewish festivals worldwide. The film won the Best Romanian Documentary award at the Gopo Awards 2015. Her latest documentary, OCCASIONAL SPIES (2021), premiered at the Transilvania International Film Festival and received a Special Jury Mention at the Astra Film Festival Sibiu 2021.

Production company profile

POINT FILMS aims to discover new directors and bring a fresh, new vibe and vision to the Romanian producing scene. Point Film is led by director/producer Tudor Giurgiu, founder and president of the Transilvania IFF, owner of the Transilvania Film distribution company, the Romanian streaming platform TIFF UNLIMITED, and the well-established production company, Libra Film. Some notable films produced by Libra Film include THE HISTORY OF LOVE (2016) by Radu Mihăileanu; MENOCCHIO THE HERETIC (2018) by Alberto Fasulo; CANNIBAL (2013) by Manuel Cuenca. The team also includes producer Adriana Racasan, a film directing graduate, who has worked on over thirty films as a production manager and executive producer since 2010. Point Film has also co-produced the second feature by the Slovak director Ivan Ostrochovsky, SERVANTS (2020), which had its world premiere at the Berlinale's Encounter section in 2020.

Where are we at?

TOTAL ESTIMATED BUDGET
1.102.607 EUR

FINANCES PENDING
997.607 EUR

FINANCES IN PLACE
105.000 EUR

Production timeline

NOVEMBER 2022 - DECEMBER 2023
Development & Financing of the project

JANUARY - MAY 2024
Pre-production

MAY - JUNE 2024
Shooting

JUNE - NOVEMBER 2024
Post-production

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