Astra Film Festival continues online for Romanian audiences till 8 November 2026

Founded in 1993, Astra Film Festival is Romania’s longest-running documentary film festival and one of Europe’s leading events dedicated to non-fiction cinema. The festival is included by the European Film Academy among the festivals entitled to make direct nominations for the European Film Awards. Astra Film Festival is a strategic cultural project of the Ministry of Culture, organised by Astra Film, CNM Astra and the Astra Film Foundation. The festival is held under the High Patronage of the President of Romania and is co-funded by Sibiu City Hall and Sibiu County Council.

Its institutional partners include the Romanian Film Centre (CNC), UNATC, the Romanian Filmmakers Union (UCIN), the Sibiu State Philharmonic, DRRM, and Dacin Sara.

WINNERS:

Romania Competition:

Best Documentary:
A Train Passes Every Day and It Never Stops / În fiecare zi trece același tren și nu se oprește niciodată (Romania)
Directed by Vlad Petri

Best Director:
Lenin’s Pawn / Pionul lui Lenin (Romania, Republic of Moldova)
Directed by Dragoș Turea

Astra Film Special Mention:
How to Talk to Lydia / Cum să vorbești cu Lydia (Georgia, Germany)
Directed by Rusudan Gaprindashvili

Eastern Europe Competition:

Best Documentary:
To Hold a Mountain / Planina (Serbia, France, Montenegro, Slovenia)
Directed by Biljana Tutorov, Petar Glomazić

Emerging Voices of Documentary International Competition:

Best Film:
If Pigeons Turned to Gold (Czech Republic, Slovakia)
Directed by Pepa Lubojacki

Best Director:
Karin Pennanen for Days of Wonder (Finland, Denmark, Norway)

Astra Film Special Mention:
From Dawn to Dawn (Spain, France)
Directed by Xisi Sofia Ye Chen 

DocSchool:

Best Documentary:
Sassy Spartans (Germany, New Caledonia)
Directed by Maud Mascré

Astra Film Special Mention:
Amma, Do Giraffes Cry? (Czech Republic)
Directed by Kartikeya Saxena

Click HERE for a press release.