On March 3rd, as part of the schedule of the Romanian Film Promotion Association, the 2nd edition of the Gopo Awards took place, in the Throne Hall of the Romanian National Art Museum. Various personalities from the cultural life, as well as critics and cinema historians, were invited to grant these awards, considered to be the Oscars of Romanian film production. This year, the award for best original music went to Cristian Lolea, for the soundtrack of Înger necesar (An Angel Hooked on Me). On this occasion, the composer made a short statement for us:


What influenced you to approach soundtracks?

Înger necesar (An Angel Hooked on Me) was my first movie; actually, it is the first time I have ever composed a soundtrack. Gheorghe Preda, the director, was looking for a composer for this movie, and this is how we met. It happened that we got along, and we collaborated very well, so in 2004 I started writing soundtracks, too.


To what extent do you think the soundtrack can contribute to a movie's success?

It depends a lot on the movie. I mean, a thriller or a horror always counts on musical effects and sound effects in general. Anyway, I believe that a movie cannot be a good one without high quality music. As it is the case with Înger necesar (An Angel Hooked on me), I was lucky enough to work for a movie where music is very important. It comes to the foreground, since the main character is a composer.


How do you see the future of soundtracks in Romania, considering that some film directors prefer light music for their films or sometimes they even leave out music altogether?

The more numerous and relevant Romanian movies will be, the more soundtracks will come, and good ones too, I hope.


Are you still involved in other cinema productions?

I have worked for a few short films and soon, a documentary should come out soon, called Descriptio Moldaviae, in six episodes. It is, naturally, about Moldavia, and is directed by Stelian Tanase; it will be broadcast on TV.