PRODUCTION: Crulic - The Path To Beyond in Postproduction

06-06-2011

PRODUCTION: Crulic - The Path To Beyond in Postproduction

By Iulia Blaga

BUCHAREST: Writer-director Anca Damian (Crossing Dates) is in postproduction with a long animated feature Crulic - The Path to Beyond, a Romanian-Polish coproduction based on the tragic story of Claudiu Crulic, a 33-year-old Romanian who starved himself to death in a Polish prison in January 2008.

In 2007, Crulic was arrested in Poland for theft and went on a hunger strike for four months to prove his innocence, writing in vain to the Romanian Consulate and asking for help. When news about his death came out, the Romanian Foreign Minister resigned, and the Romanian Consul was recalled by the President. An investigation was opened, and three Polish doctors were tried in court for letting Crulic die.

Crulic sau drumul spre dincolo/Crulic - The Path to Beyond is a 73 minute animated documentary gathering data collected from files that Damian was permitted to read. Unlike the Romanian journalists and with the help of the Polish co-producer, she was allowed to research every page in the files, she told FNE. She spent one year doing that, while also talking to the people involved: Crulic's family in Romania, Polish neighbours, doctors, prosecutors, his cellmate, and prison representatives.

The project creatively mixes handmade animation, photographs, documents, facts and figures. Elena Vlădăreanu contributed to Damian's script as adviser for the narration. The Romanian designers are Dan Panaitescu, Raluca Popa, Roxana Bentu, Dragoş Ştefan, and Tuliu Olteanu. The story is told from the point of view of Claudiu Crulic, who is voiced by Vlad Ivanov (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days). The animation has wrapped, and the sound postproduction, by Piotr Witkowski and Sebastian Włodarczyk, is taking place in Poland at Alvena Studios, where the music composed by Piotr Dziubek was recorded.

Damian, who is producing with Aparte Film (www.apartefilm.net) told FNE that she received funding from Fundacja im. Ferdynanda Magellana (www.fmagellan.pl) through the Polish co-producer Arkadiusz Wojnarowsky, and support of 50,000 euro from the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl) at the end of 2009. The Regional Fund Krakow/the Krakow Film Commission (http://www.film-commission.pl/en/o-film-comission/krakow-film-fund) is also supporting the project with 10,000 euro, and the Romanian Ministry of Culture and Editura Video (www.editura-video.ro) granted 46,000 euro.

The Romanian National Centre for Cinema (www.cncinema.abt.ro) gave the project a development grant in November 2008, and a production grant of 82,000 euro in 2010. The budget is 281,000 euro.

The project had also the support of the Romanian Cultural Institute from Warsaw (http://www.icr.ro/varsovia) and from DSG Visual Effects and Animation (www.dsg.ro).

Wide Management (www.widemanagement.com) is handling the world sales.

Production Information

Aparte Film

165/3/21, Calea Călăraşi

030614 Bucharest, Romania

Phone/Fax: +40.21.320.41.28

www.apartefilm.net

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Polish Film Institute

Ul. Krakowskie Przedmieście 21/23, 00-071 Warszawa

Phone: +48 22 42 10 130

Fax: +48 22 42 10 241