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About this project
A recollection of the life of George-Matei Cantacuzino, a Romanian architect, painter, father and husband, who sent his family abroad before WWII to guarantee their safety and his following struggle to reunite with them, during the changing regimes in Romania, between 1938 and 1960.
THE STORY
In 1938, George-Matei Cantacuzino was faced with an excruciating choice. In the face of the looming spectre of war, Romania’s celebrated architect and aristocrat was forced to decide how to protect his family, not only from the threat outside the borders of his country but, also from the violence that had been escalating within Romania over the previous ten years.
In the summer of 1939 he sent his wife and their children to live in England while he remained to manage the extensive family wealth. They could not have known that this would be the last time they would ever see each other.
The coming of WWII and the boiling political tension meant that George-Matei, as a notable public figure, was stranded in Romania.
This documentary tells the story of a twenty-year long struggle of a father and husband to be reunited with his family. This shines through in his letters to his family and friends, some of which have been already published.
Primary information resources for this film are those private letters spanning two decades, intimate access to family history and interviews with family members including his son, Serban Cantacuzino, and great-grandson, George, who will be guiding the film crew on this journey.
The viewer will be led across George’s life by visiting the places described in the letters and comparing them to their former state through 2D illustrations. Certain parts of the story will be backed by archived footage from the period, interviews with surviving family members, friends, relatives and art history experts
FILMMAKERS TEAM
Milo has known George since they were at nursery school together and this project grew out of a shared interest in film and their discussions about George's family history. Milo is currently living in London and creating this documentary for his MA in Cinematography. He comes from a background in the visual arts and his most recent project before this was an immersive documentary about an artisanal furniture-maker.
SOFIA PETERS, Director
Sofia Peters came to London from Germany to study Directing. For her, telling stories with film and photography is one of the best ways to help people be part of new worlds they haven’t entered before. Being a filmmaker, she has willingly taken on that position of the provider of escape and open horizons and wants to keep doing it for the rest of her life, one way or another.
ANITA NITULESCU, Producer
Anita recently completed her MA in Filmmaking and she has been dedicated to producing film content ever since . She has previous degrees in Media & Communication and International Relations which strengthened her passion for film and her knowledge of cinema. Anita has recently produced short films, web series, corporate videos and adverts.
