Just a few days after the premiere of the film “Cravata Yellow”, directed by Serge Ioan Celebidachi, the high school magazine Alecart from Iași accuses the production team of exerting pressure to change or remove a review signed by a student. The editors claim that the gesture represents a form of pressure on young critics.
The team of the film “Yellow Tie”, accused of asking for the censorship of a review PHOTO: Facebook
According to Alecart, director Serge Ioan Celebidachi would have conveyed, through a teacher, that the review “should be deleted”, considering it “a catastropheLater, part of the production team would have insisted on removing the ending of the chronicle, on the grounds that it revealed the denouement of the film and could affect the audience’s interest.
The coordinators of the magazine, professors Nicoleta and Emil Munteanu, state that producer Cristina Dobrițoiu even mentioned the possibility of discussions “with lawyers”if the passage considered spoiler was not removed. The student was not contacted directly, all requests being forwarded to the editorial staff.
Following these pressures, the author of the review decided to modify the end of the text, “not because she was convinced she was wrong, but because the accumulated pressure had become too great“, stated Alecart.
Alecart magazine denounces censorship
The editors published a broad message, quoted by the publication educatieprivata.ro, in which they condemn the attempts to influence the editorial content: “To ask such a magazine and, through it, some students, to delete, remove, withdraw or accept qualifiers like catastrophe is to ignore the very spirit that built these young people: curiosity, responsibility and the right to have a voice of their own“.
Founded 17 years ago in Iasi, Alecart is considered a reference project in cultural education, involving students in reading, debate and critical writing. The coordinators of the magazine ask for a public apology for the student Maria Oglinzanu, deputy editor-in-chief.
Film crew: “A big misunderstanding”
The producer Adela Vrânceanu Celebidachi, the director’s wife, rejects the accusations regarding any attempt at censorship: “It is a big misunderstanding. They were asked to avoid describing the outcome. We wanted the audience to enjoy the film without knowing the key moments beforehand. I did not ask for the change of critical opinions. I did not ask to change the analysis. We did not pursue the limitation of editorial freedom. I respected the chronicle and the work of the author. Our prayer comes out of concern for the viewer, not to have revealed the ending of the film. That’s it.
To be even clearer, that text was even favorable to the filmwe have no problem with those who criticize us either. For example, we got a harsh review in Films in Frame, and today we gave an interview to all the people at Films in Frame without a problem. We respect the point of view of any author, whether we are talking about Alecart or any other publication”said Adela Vrânceanu Celebidachi for Cultura la duba.
“What do students learn when the director of the movie Cravata Galbenă demands the removal of an article? Or the production team of the same film demands the suppression of some sequences from the article on the grounds that they contain spoilers? That their voice does not matter? That opinions are negotiated under pressure? That art is allowed to do anything and criticism must be silent? In Alecart, we refuse these lessons.
Today we are publishing the text of the magazine’s coordinators about the situation created around the chronicle of the film “Yellow Tie”. Not against a movie, which some of us recommend, but out of respect for students who read, think and write freely.
About pressures, paternalistic justifications and a lesson in dignity that the students offered, they did not receive. About editorial freedom. About the responsibility of adults. About what cultural education really means”says the Alecart post.
Strong reactions in the cultural environment
The scandal generated numerous reactions among writers, teachers and people of culture. The writer and teacher Radu Vancu criticized the attitude of the film team: “Some high school students are watching a movie. Then I write about it. The director does not like the chronicle and requests, through a third party, that it be removed from the site. (…) High school students don’t get scared, they don’t accept, they maintain their history. (…) As long as there are high school students in Romania capable of educating adults, we still have a chance“.
The director Radu Afrim intervened in his turn, publicly supporting the Alecart team: “The students from Alecart wrote – more than once – about my performances in Iasi, with talent and passion. It seems to me an unparalleled myth what is happening. At the same time, it is a sign that your writing matters if it has reached this far”.
Poet Mariana Codruț criticized both the director’s reaction and the involvement of the teacher who sent the message: “Depressing that a man (the director) born and raised in freedom has such miserable tendencies of authoritarianism. Equally depressing, if not more so, that a lady teacher, instead of supporting her students in their absolutely legitimate endeavor – to speak freely in public about a publicly shown film – raises her voice at them“.
High school record and chronicle film
“Yellow Tie”, with a budget of 20 million euros, is the most expensive Romanian film ever made and is currently playing in cinemas. Director Serge Ioan Celebidachi is the son of conductor Sergiu Celibidache. In contrast, Alecart remains a small but influential publishing institution, a symbol of reading and critical thinking among high school students.
