The 2020 edition of the GOPO Awards – the gala that celebrates each year the most popular and prestigious films and filmmakers in the Romanian industry is happening tonight, three months laters than it was planned.

With our hearts bumping for our favourites and the excitement that comes with it, few of our editors have decided to make a bet on some of tonight’s winners – Victor Morozov, Georgiana Musat, Ionut Mares and Laura Musat have picked their favourites and also predicted who will win in the following categories: 

BEST PICTURE:

Laura: La Gomera will be the grand winner. It’s been on the lips of everyone in the industry – both locally and internationally, and was voted as one of the best films in 2019. A ‘crowd-pleaser’ kind of film, with good actors and filled with action which has been a hit in the Romanian box office – something quite rare for Romanian films. Personally, I keep my fingers crossed for Touch Me Not – even though it’s not an easy film to digest, to me it was revealing. 

Ionuț: Touch Me Not deserves to win, for its originality and ambitions; however the winner will probably be La Gomera, it’s an ingenious crowd-pleaser. 

Georgiana: La Gomera – my favourite and the winner this year.

Victor: I hope and I also believe that La Gomera will be the lucky winner.

BEST DIRECTOR:

Laura: And the award goes to .. Corneliu Porumboiu, for La Gomera!

I think there are some very talented directors missing from the list. However, If I had to vote for someone, it would be Adina Pintilie, for her courage of researching and directing a film like Touch Me Not

Ionut: Corneliu Porumboiu deserves to win and he will probably be the winner, for his unprecedented tricks, never seen before in Romanian cinematography.

Georgiana: I would be happy if Adina Pintilie or Anca Damian won, but probably Corneliu Porumboiu will be the winner

Victor: Anca Damian seems to have invented a different kind of directing, full of gambols and surprises coming out of a magic box, when what the story really needed was to be left alone. Why not? I still think Corneliu Porumboiu will win, which won’t be a bad option either.

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:

Laura: I’m not sure I’ll get this one right, but I think the battle is between Gheorghe Visu and Razvan Vasilescu. However, I would like the winner to be Iulian Postelnicu, for his truthful role in Arrest – one of my favorite films in 2019, and much of it is because of Iulian’s character and interpretation.

Ionut: The winner should be and will be Iulian Postelnicu, his interpretation is memorable.

Georgiana: I hope Gheorghe Visu will win, but I believe the award will go to Iulian Postelnicu.

Victor: The award will probably go to Iulian Postelnicu, but I still keep in my mind Gheorghe Visu’s interpretation in Heidi.

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:

Laura: For me, this is one of the strongest categories of this year’s edition of GOPO. I have no doubt that either Dana Rogoz (MO) or Judith State (Monsters.) will win and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for both.

Ionut: I would like this award to go to Judith State, for the strong emotion she transfers to her character, in a very subtle way. However, I believe Dana Rogoz will win, which is a strong candidate as well. 

Georgiana: My favourite this year is Catalina Mihai (Heidi), but I believe the award will go to Dana Rogoz.

Victor: Judith State’s performance was subtle and delicate, but I believe the award will go to Dana Rogoz.

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:

Laura: István Téglás will be the winner – an outstanding stage actor that slowly makes his way in the film industry. Another great stage actor that was nominated in this category is Richard Bovnoczki, but I doubt he has any chances.

Ionut: István Téglás character is terrifying and funny at the same time. I believe he’ll win the statuette and I hope he will.

Georgiana: My favourite is Serban Pavlu and I believe he’ll be the winner of this category.

Victor: I hope we dedicate this award to István Téglás the-cinema-actor, however Serban Pavlu’s win won’t bother me either.

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:

Laura: By the numbers, Rodica Lazar will win this one, but I’ll be pleasantly surprised if the jury committee will pick a younger talent, as Madalina Craiu (MO). I do not have a favourite, though, I think each character is different and memorable in its own way.

Ionut: I would like to see Madalina Craiu win, for her convincing but detained interpretation, but I believe the lucky winner will be Julieta Szonyi and I’m quite sure nobody will get upset if she does win the award.

Georgiana: Madalina Craiu is my favourite, but Rodica Lazar will be the winner.

Victor: I keep my fingers crossed for Julieta Szonyi, but I believe Rodica Lazar will win.

BEST SCREENPLAY:

Laura: Another powerful category of this year’s edition. I put my bet on MO – because of the present topic of the film, the #metoo movement. I would be happy if Arrest or Monsters. won – all these three titles are in my top five films of 2019.

Ionut: I would like Corneliu Porumboiu to win and I believe he will, for the way he adapts the conventions of the american noir film to the Romanian landscapes. 

Georgiana: Corneliu Porumboiu – the prediction and my favourite.

Victor: A very weak category this year. I’m afraid the award will go to Andrei Cohn and Alexandru Negoescu, for Arrest.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:

Laura: The award will be disputed between Tudor Mircea (La Gomera) and Marius Panduru (Parking), but in the end it will go to Tudor. 

Ionut: I would like Marius Panduru to win, for the way he adapted his style to the melo-drama of the city’s outskirts, though I believe Tudor Mircea will take the award.

Georgiana: My favourite here is George Chiper-Lillemark, but as my colleagues said, I believe the award will go to Tudor Mircea

Victor: The perfect description of this category: postcards from Spain versus postcards from anywhere else. The award will go to Tudor Mircea.

BEST DEBUT:

Laura: 2019 was a great year for Romanian debuts, so I think this is, again, a strong category and a tough decision to make. I believe the award will go to Adina Pintilie, for Touch Me Not – her debut made a stir worldwide and won the Silver Bear at Berlinale 2018. I would be happy if either she, Radu Dragomir (for MO), or Marius Olteanu (for Monsters.) took the statuette – in a way, the latter two are more entitled to win, Adina’s film was released almost two years ago. 

Ionut: Adina Pintilie should and will win, for the absolute novelty she brings in the Romanian cinema.

Georgiana: Adina Pintilie should be the winner and I count on that.

Victor: I hope Timebox will win, so we show the world there are great documentary films here, even though they are defective.

BEST EUROPEAN FILM:

Laura: Tough choice, all the movies on this list have been internationally acclaimed and are good movies. I will bet on László Nemes’ film – Sunset.

Ionut: I hope and believe that Dolor y Gloria will be the lucky winner, for its colorful sentimentality.

Georgiana: My favorite is .. The Favourite, but I believe Dolor y Gloria will win.

Victor: I hope Leto wins, for a thousand reasons. However, the odds are in favor of Dolor y Gloria.

BEST DOCUMENTARY:

Ionut: The Distance Between Me and Me, by Mona Nicoara is my favourite and it will probably win. A powerful portrait of Nina Cassian. 

Georgiana: Timebox is my favourite but the winner will be The Distance Between Me and Me.

Victor: Same here – Timebox for the win, but probably the award will go to The Distance Between Me and Me.

BEST SHORT FILM (FICTION):

Ionut: My favorite is The Last Trip To The Seaside, however the award will probably go to The Afghans.

Georgiana: My favorite two are Celed and The Last Trip To The Seaside, and I believe one of them will actually win

BEST SHORT FILM (DOCUMENTARY):

Ionut: I would be happy if The Trophy of Youth (by Razvan Oprescu) wins – for its subject and the nostalgia it brings. Enxhi Rista and her film He loves my eyes will probably win, for the amazing energy it radiates

Georgiana: Our daily work – my favorite. He loves my eyes – the winner.

Victor: I expect the award to go to He loves my eyes, however, my favorite is The Trophy of Youth, but it is a very subjective choice.

Redacție

An article written by the magazine's team