“Fjord”, the new film directed by Cristian Mungiu and starring Sebastian Stan, took an important step towards the Oscars.
After the success at Cannes, the film has officially ensured its eligibility in the race for the Oscar trophy in the Best International Film category, thanks to a new rule that changes the selection method, TV Mania announces.
The film, which was awarded the prestigious Palme d’Or trophy at the Cannes Film Festival, uses a mixture of languages: English, Romanian, Norwegian and Swedish. There was initial uncertainty and speculation among critics and audiences in France about the proportion of English lines.
Academy regulations require that more than 50% of the dialogue of a film entered in this category be in a language other than English. However, distributor Neon has dispelled any doubts, confirming that the threshold has been crossed and the English subtitles are fully compliant and legible.
The Academy’s new rule clears the path for “Fjord” to the Oscars
The automatic qualification of Cristian Mungiu’s film is possible thanks to a major regulation change implemented by the Academy. Currently, films are no longer required to be selected by a country’s official entry committee. Any film in a language other than English becomes eligible if it takes the top prize at one of six top international festivals:
- Palme d’Or – Cannes
- The Golden Bear – Berlin
- The Golden Lion – Venice
- Best Film Award – Busan
- Grand Jury Prize – Sundance
- Platform Award – Toronto
“Anatomy of a Fall” later earned five Oscar nominations of its own, including Best Picture.
Although “Fjord” qualified directly, it can still be officially chosen by the national committees in Romania or Norway as the main proposal, if it meets their internal requirements.
Starting from August, “FJORD” will also have premieres in most European countries, and Cristian Mungiu will participate in some of them.
On May 23, Cristian Mungiu won the Palme d’Or at the Film Festival, with the film “Fjord”a drama inspired by a true case, which has sparked strong reactions from both audiences and international critics. It is the second Palme d’Or in the career of the Romanian director, after the success achieved in 2007 with the film “4 months, 3 weeks and 2 days”.
