Authors — Savina Petkova
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“Emotional Time Travel”: Sophy Romvari on Blue Heron
Canadian-Hungarian filmmaker Sophy Romvari draws inspiration from memories across her acclaimed shorts, while also conjuring up a whole new (cinematic) world to shield them from the passage of time. After Nine Behind, Remembrance of József Romvári and Still Processing, Blue Heron is a fully staged narrative following a Hungarian family of six moving into their new home on Vancouver Island. With the promise of a clean start, they try to rewrite the family history in present tense—an effort seen through the experiences of the youngest child, Sasha (Eylul Guven). Jeremy (Edik Beddoes), the oldest, is affectionate and gentle towards her, […]
by Savina Petkova on Sep 8, 2025 -
From Elitist to Egalitarian: Julian Radlmaier on Phantoms of July
The films of Julian Radlmaier have all been infused with a specific kind of longing for a better future in the sense of Marxist utopias. From his early films—A Spectre is Haunting Europe (2013) and A Proletarian Winter’s Tale (2014)—to the snappy meta-commentary Self-Criticism of a Bourgeois Dog in 2017 and 2021’s Bloodsuckers, aptly sub-titled “A Marxist Vampire Comedy,” Radlmaier has perfected the political allegory for our day and age. Static tableaux paired with outrageously funny one-liners (“Germany is sinking like the Titanic and we’re Leonardo DiCaprio”) make the films meme-friendly without compromising their devotion to labor politics and community. […]
by Savina Petkova on Aug 20, 2025 -
Mirror Mirror: Lucile Hadžihalilović on Berlinale 2025 Premiere The Ice Tower
With The Ice Tower opening today in New York from Yellowveil Pictures, we’re reposting Savina Petkova’s interview with writer/director Lucile Hadžihalilović out of this year’s Berlin International Film Festival. The Ice Tower plays at the IFC Center, with Beatrice Loayza moderating a Q&A with the director Friday, October 3, and Filmmaker Editor-in-Chief Scott Macaulay moderating on Saturday, October 4. — Editor We didn’t have to wait too long after Earwig (2021) for Lucile Hadžihalilović’s enigmatic new offering, The Ice Tower. The whistling sounds of mountain winds announce the arrival of the Snow Queen (Marion Cotillard), both to the set of […]
by Savina Petkova on Feb 20, 2025 -
A Film To Read: Matiás Piñeiro, Tomas Paula Marques and Gabi Saidón on You Burn Me
New York-based Argentinian director Matiás Piñeiro’s work is without a doubt, a celebration of intertextuality. After continuously exploring the female roles in Shakespeare’s comedies from 2011’s Rosalinda up until 2020’s Isabella, he was drawn to a text which seemed impenetrable, admitting he had no clue how to film a poetic dialogue. In order to collect the shots for the adaptation-film-collage that would become You Burn Me, the filmmaker traveled between New York and San Sebastian (where he teaches at the EQZE film school, Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola), which gave him the possibility to “develop the material, watch it and think […]
by Savina Petkova on Apr 25, 2024
