Well-known Moldovan cinema man, writer would have turned 85

Chisinau, 6 November /MOLDPRES/ - A departed poet, prose writer and film director, Merited Master of Art, People’s Artist of Russia Emil Loteanu, declared as ‘’the best film director of the Moldovan cinematography from the 20th  century,’’ would have turned 85 years today.   

Emil Loteanu was born in the Clocusna village, northern Ocnita district, in 1936. He attended courses of acting at the Theatre School under the Moscow Art Academic Theatre (MHAT) in 1954-56 and of film directing at the All-Union State Institute of Cinematography (VGIK) from the Russian capital (1956-62). After the finishing of the film directing school, Loteanu was employed at the Moldova-Film studio in 1962 and during 1973-83 he worked at the Mosfilm studio from Moscow.    

In 1985, Emil Loteanu returned to the Moldovan Soviet republic and held the position of head of the Cinema men’s Union during 1987-1992. Loteanu had an important role in the education of two series of film directors at the high film direction school. He founded the experimental creation association Phoenix-M, the theatre and film magazine, The Magic Lantern, and was also the author of the TV programme, A Star is being Sought. Loteanu was also the leader of the course of theatre and film actors at the Arts Institution from Chisinau. Among the young actors educated by Emil Loteanu, there were Svetlana Toma, Grigore Grigoriu, Victor Ciutac, Maria Sagaidac, brothers Victor and Mircea Sotchi-Voinicescu, etc.     

Emil Loteanu is the author of numerous, full-length and short films presented at about 50 festivals and cinematographic retrospectives in many cities of the world: Buenos Aires, Baltimore, Budapest, Helsinki, Tokyo, London, Montreal, Paris, Rome, Rio de Janeiro, as well as in all republics of the former USSR.

As recognition of his merits in the film direction sector, Emil Loteanu was awarded the titles of Merited Master of Art from Soviet Moldova (1969), People’s Artist of Russia, title of honorary member of the Nike International Film Academy. Loteanu was also awarded the State Prize, Order of the Republic and in 2001 – the prize for the excellence of film directing art, awarded by the Romanian Athenaeum.  

Emil Loteanu died in a Moscow-based hospital on 18 April 2003 and was buried at the Vagankovo Cemetery from the Russian capital.