LYNX Festival 2025
Initiated by the Wild Romania Association and the Forona Association, LYNX Festival 2025 is the first event dedicated exclusively to nature photography and documentary film in our country
Corina Sabău, 14.06.2025, 12:00
The LYNX Festival took place last week in Brașov, featuring premieres of fabulous documentary films, extensive photography exhibitions, workshops for children and meetings with international guests, local artists and representatives of environmental NGOs. The festival, initiated by the Wild Romania Association and the Forona Association, is the first event dedicated exclusively to nature photography and documentary film in our country and has brought over 3,000 spectators to the big screen in its first two editions.
The documentary film that opened this year’s edition was impressive, not only because of the images it brought to the big screen, premiering in Romania, but also because of the story behind its production: over 1,000 days of filming in almost 30 countries across our continent. Dan Dinu, director of the LYNX Festival, talked to us about the films in the programme and the opening film: ‘Europe – one continent, five worlds’.
“This year, festival selectors chose many films about Europe, and after watching them, we had pretty much the same options. That is why we have included in our programme one of the most ambitious films made on our continent, Europe – One Continent, Five Worlds, a journey through all the natural habitats of the continent, from forests to Arctic and marine areas and little-known places such as the Azores. What is very spectacular about this documentary is that it also presents a wide variety of animals. For example, one of the mammals featured in the film, an extremely rare animal that lives in the Caucasus, is the Asian leopard. As I said, there are very few such leopards left in Europe. A scene from the same film, which I really liked, shows us how bats can help preserve old books stored in various libraries by hunting the insects that would otherwise destroy them. But all the stories in this documentary are absolutely fascinating”.
Produced by Christian Baumeister, who is also the director and cinematographer of the series, Europe – One Continent, Five Worlds has a total of six episodes in which the wilderness and diversity of our continent are presented more extensively and in greater detail than ever before. The film, a tribute to Europe’s most impressive natural wonders, was shot over three years by approximately 30 cameramen from 10 different countries, who captured nature in over 50 locations, including Romania. Dan Dinu, director of the LYNX Festival.
„That was the idea, to start the festival with a large-scale production. But Europe – One Continent, Five Worlds is not the only impressive film in this year’s selection. We also have, for example, a very cool production called Lions of the Skeleton Coast. It is the story of some lion cubs in Namibia, more precisely on the Skeleton Coast, who have been orphaned. It is also one of the most awarded films in the festival. Another fascinating film brings back the characters from The Jungle Book. Bagheera, Baloo and Shere Khan come to life in this documentary that reveals the fabulous and lively world of the Indian jungle. Another spectacular production is the latest documentary film by David Attenborough, which was recently released and will premiere in Romania at the LYNX Festival, before being released on TV or streaming platforms. The film is called Ocean and is a story about how the exploration of the Planetary Ocean has evolved throughout Attenborough’s life and how important it is to preserve the ocean in order to actually conserve nature on the planet. The film was, as I said, released in cinemas, but in very few cities around the world, and in Romania, unfortunately, it will not remain in cinemas. That is why it is all the more interesting to see it on the big screen and for the Romanian public. In fact, in addition to the projects we have at the Reduta Cultural Centre, we are also organising several 3D screenings on the big screen, trying to diversify the offer for the nature documentary-loving public.
True to its main objective of raising awareness about the importance of nature in our lives, LYNX Festival keeps admission to screenings and activities free of charge. The Wild Romania Association, co-organiser of the LYNX Festival, was founded in 2022 and aims to promote nature conservation and biodiversity through photography and documentary film, with the goal of educating and raising public awareness about nature protection. The association’s best-known project is the documentary România Sălbatică (Wild Romania), which has won eight awards at national and international festivals, has been distributed in over 30 countries and seen by 400,000 viewers in cinemas or at special screenings. (MI)
