If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle

Silviu, a young delinquent, is about to be released from reform school. Only five days to go. But ever since he learned that his mother has suddenly reappeared on the scene after a long absence and is determined to take his young brother away to live with her, these five days have seemed like an eternity. Silviu himself has raised his little brother and loves him as if he were his own son.

During his time behind bars Silviu has met and fallen head over heels in love with a young social worker who is studying psychology. Time is running out and his anxiety about his brother begins to turn into panic. Without a moment’s hesitation, he decides to kidnap Ana and run away with her. Once outside he gets his first taste of freedom: the wind in his hair, the open road – and his first kiss. Everything and anything seems possible. The male lead in this adaptation of a stage play by Romanian author Andreea Vălean is played by a nonprofessional, George Piştereanu, who is a high school pupil from Bucharest. He and the other members of the cast were chosen during a period of auditions that lasted six months. Among those given roles were a number of juvenile delinquents from a reformatory. The boys were permitted to attend acting classes in order to prepare for their roles. While Florin Şerban was making this feature film, director Ivana Mladenovic also shot a documentary film (working title “Life In Squares”) about the lives of young offenders in Romania. —Berlinale