The Opening Gala of this year’s Astra Film Festival will be hosted by journalist Teodora Tompea, while the Awards Gala will be presented by journalist Amalia Enache.
The AFF 2025 thematic selection maps out how society is transforming under the impact of the digital era, wars, and manipulation, as illustrated by the festival’s nine thematic sections: Woman / Mother – At What Cost?, #Occident. A Critical Perspective, Faces of Dictatorship, On Both Sides of the Bloody Frontline, The Crisis of Masculinity, Art as a Tool for Self-Exploration and Healing, The New Wave of the Far Right, Becoming an Adult, Becoming a Parent, When the Press Becomes a Fake News Factory.
In a world where children are increasingly absorbed by the digital universe of smartphones, Astra Film Junior offers them a unique tool for learning, empathy, and critical thinking: the documentary film. Because a child who learns to watch a documentary with attention will later know how to observe the world attentively — and understand it.
For the second consecutive year, Astra Film Festival dedicates a special training program to film students from Romania and across Europe, including workshops, masterclasses, and practical activities focused on the art, production, and distribution of documentary cinema. Participants include students and professors from six prestigious universities in Prague, Zagreb, Vilnius, Bratislava, and Zlín (through the Erasmus program), joined by students from Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj and UNATC Bucharest.
The presence of Ex Oriente in Sibiu reaffirms the festival’s role as a European hub for documentary cinema, where education, creation, and industry converge to shape the future of non-fiction filmmaking.
AFF is a strategic cultural project of the Romanian Ministry of Culture, organized by Astra Film, CNM Astra, and the Astra Film Foundation. It is held under the High Patronage of the President of Romania, co-financed by the Sibiu City Hall, and supported by the Sibiu County Council.
Main Sponsor: ING
Mobility Partner: Opel
Sponsors and Partners: Promenada Sibiu, Cotnari Casa de vinuri, Cartofisserie, Cărturești, Fundația 9 | BRD, Kulinarium, Pasaj Events, OWH Studio, Sonne Restaurant & Hotel, Marquardt
Festival Coffee house: Amor Perfecto
Main Media Partner: Digi 24
Recommended by Europa FM
Media Partners: News.ro, Radio România Cultural, G4Media, HotNews, SpotMedia, PressHub, Edupedu, Observator cultural, Revista FILM, MovieNews, Cinefan, Cinefilia, Gen Știri, Totul despre mame, Tribuna, Turnul sfatului, Ora de Sibiu, Sibiu 100, Sibiu independent, Mesagerul de Sibiu, Sibiul azi, Știri de Sibiu, Sibiul în imagini, Hermanstaedter Zeitung, Cineuropa, Film New Europe
Monitoring Partner: MediaTrust
Communication Partner: PiArt Vision
Digital Communication: SVAD Studio
