Teodora Ana Mihai first drew attention with her documentary Waiting for August, followed by her debut fiction feature La Civil [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Teodora Ana Mihai
scheda film], inspired by the true story of a Mexican mother confronting a cartel, and later Traffic [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Teodora Ana Mihai
scheda film], based on the theft of Old Master paintings in the Netherlands by three Romanian nationals. A cinema deeply rooted in history, her work turns to a new chapter in Heysel 85 [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Teodora Ana Mihai
scheda film], presented in world premiere at the Berlinale in the Berlinale Special section: the Heysel disaster that took place in Brussels in May 1985. In this historical film crafted as a high-tension thriller, the filmmaker examines the responsibilities and systemic failures at play.

Cineuropa: What are the origins of this project?
Teodora Ana Mihai: My producer Hans Everaert told me about the project because he knew I wanted to explore a Belgian subject after making films in Mexico and Romania. I’m Romanian, but my parents came to Belgium when I was very young as political refugees. Belgium is my adopted country. When Hans spoke to me about the film, there was an initial script that needed reworking, and he gave me complete freedom to make it my own. The fact that I might not have been the first name people would think of to take on this project was very stimulating, as I knew I could bring a different perspective and my own sensibility to it.

You chose to approach this event through the lens of systemic failures and ignored warning signs, as a tragedy that should have been avoided.
One of the reasons I wanted to make this film was that I saw the metaphorical potential of this story. There is a historical dimension, of course, but it is also strikingly contemporary in its themes, almost to a frightening degree. When I watch the news today, and see how the ruling classes behave, I feel very worried, and I see many echoes of it in the film. When I speak with people about what is real or exaggerated in the film, I’m fully aware that certain aspects may seem grotesque. But when I look at real people in the real world today, I sometimes wonder whether they themselves are caricatures! We always expect fiction to make things more believable than reality itself. It’s rather ironic.

The film unfolds around the stadium, below it and beneath its structure. Most of the action remains off-screen.
There were production-related reasons, of course, but in the end it almost felt like a gift; constraints that stimulated creativity. I loved the idea of being inside the belly of the beast, deep within the stadium. A great deal has already been shown and told about this event. But at the time, decisions were made in the utmost secrecy. And I felt it would be fascinating to step inside that secrecy.

The film incorporates a great deal of archival footage from the period, and its visual style was conceived to echo that image language.
Yes, I wanted to show the behind-the-scenes perspective, but it was essential for the stadium itself to be present with intentation. We are often alongside the journalists; that became a gateway for introducing those images. During my first discussions with my cinematographer, he immediately said: we have to shoot on 16mm to match the archives. Not to imitate them, but so that the transition between the two would feel seamless. We also chose to shoot handheld, in keeping with that same approach. I also wanted to respect the integrity of the archival footage, so I chose not to insert my characters into it. I also wanted to respect the integrity of the archival footage, so I chose not to insert my characters into it. At the same time, you have to show things - you can’t rely solely on suggestion - and that is a delicate balance to strike.

Heysel that day becomes a war zone - something you feel not only through the images, but also through the sound…
Yes, we knew from the outset that the sound design would be crucial. We were making two films at once, equally important: one through the image, the other through sound. That was the condition for embracing the backstage perspective; the event unfolding off-screen had to feel tangible, otherwise it would be theatre rather than cinema. It was also the first time I worked with an original score. My background comes from Cristian Mungiu, the Romanian New Wave, the Dardenne brothers - to put it simply, they don’t use music, and until now neither had I. But here, I felt it would suit the story well. And since the 1980s were so present in the film’s style, we shaped the score in that spirit as well.