Director Alexandru Solomon: The screening of the film “Arsenie. The afterlife” was canceled by the Arad County Library and Culture Center, which allegedly received “negative messages with threats”

Screening of the film “Arsenie. Viața de Apoi” was canceled by the Arad Municipal Culture Center and the County Library, who cited that they had received “negative messages with threats”, director Alexandru Solomon announced on Facebook.

The film, claims the director, was to be screened on Wednesday evening at Cinema Arta in Arad, in an event organized by the citizenit Association.

“48 hours ago, the association was informed by the Municipal Cultural Center of Arad that the projection cannot take place, because negative messages with threats were received. Then, the organizers managed to move the screening to the County Library. Last night at 9 p.m., the Library also canceled the screening. I spoke an hour ago with the director of the Center, trying to understand how it is possible for a public institution to cancel an event agreed upon for a long time based on verbal threats. To restrict the access of the public in Arad to a film, without even having seen it. Why didn’t they request the protection of the gendarmerie, if an event that takes place in a hall subordinated to the mayor’s office is threatened. (I reproduce here the message as it was played to me: “If you dare to screen the film, we come there and it will be a circus, we make a scandal.”) Why does a public institution give in and violate the right to free speech? The director told me that I can’t force the people of Arad to see the film (who forces them?!) Arad is the only city in Romania that canceled a screening of the film, at least until now. Censorship? electoral calculations? opportunism? lack of commitment?”, the director wrote on Facebook.

The citizenit association announced on Facebook that the screening of the Arsenie documentary. The afterlife will take place on Wednesday evening, on Terasa Flex, in Arad, from 20:30, in the presence of director Alexandru Solomon.

Director Alexandru Solomon explained in an interview to HotNews.ro what he wanted to bring to light with “Arsenie. The Afterlife”, his documentary about the fascination that Romania’s best-known clergyman, Arsenie Boca, still exerts on Romanians.