In a world where what seemed like science fiction in the last century is now (increasingly close to) reality, the Transilvania International Film Festival (June 13–22, 2025, Cluj-Napoca) not only offers a thematically curated retrospective, but also dares to imagine a future dominated by technology. Advances in the field and the explosion of Artificial Intelligence across virtually every domain certainly bring advantages, but they also give rise to an increasingly palpable anxiety, threatening to alter the world as we know it—now that Pandora’s box has been flung wide open and things appear to be spiraling out of control.
With the “help” of AI—but also with the input of a thoroughly human screenwriter—this year’s TIFF visual campaign presents a futuristic vision of host city Cluj, infused with a dash of irony and cheeky imagination, while remaining entirely plausible. Paraphrasing the meaningful title of a famous film, “The Future Always Rings Twice”—not just in the spot for the 24th edition of TIFF, but also in a wide-ranging anthology of classic and visionary masterpieces, as well as recent titles in the program, aptly named Tomorrow is Fear.
In the spot, actor Gabriel Spahiu plays a cinephile who uses AI software to learn more about TIFF. That’s the real spark that suddenly fuels his curiosity, triggering a virtual—and increasingly annoyed—exchange of lines about what Cluj will look like in 25 years. The final answer seems to satisfy him, though something about it doesn’t quite sound reassuring.
The TIFF.24 spot is directed by Radu Bărbulescu, with cinematography by Tudor Mircea, editing by Alexandru Pintică, production design by Raluca Pascu, and a script by Dan Panaet and Tudor Giurgiu. The spot was produced with the support of Cutare Film, Eval Compact, Colorgrade, Raza Studio, FrameBreed Studio, and Avanpost.