Cristi Puiu

Cristi Puiu (b. 1967) is a Romanian director and screenwriter recognized as a leading figure of the Romanian New Wave. Initially trained in painting in Geneva, he turned to cinema, debuting with the low-budget road film Stuff and Dough (2001), and earning early acclaim with The Death of Mr. Lăzărescu (2005, Cannes Un Certain Regard), a raw, humanist critique of institutional indifference. His sober realism and long-take aesthetic evolved in Sieranevada (2016, Cannes competition) and reached philosophical depth in Malmkrog (2020, Berlinale Encounters Best Director), a restrained chamber drama meditating on morality, power, and spiritual crisis. Puiu’s cinema melds observational authenticity, existential inquiry, and formal discipline.