The documentary Aliyah DaDa, directed by Oana Giurgiu, premiered at Astra Film Festival (October 2014), in Romania competitive program, dedicated to local productions.
Described by film critics as a “terribly necessary film”, Aliyah DaDa tells the story of a non-Jew Romanian, raised under the supreme Communist truth, who starts a journey to discover the reality behind the Romanian jews aliyah (the return to the Holy Land). The story brings up the adventure of the first settlers that abandoned their modern life in East Europe at end of XIX century, for surviving in a primitive way in the hostile Palestine; then reveal the best hidden horrors of the Second World War in Romania, or Romanian communists’ secret deals for “trading” the Romanian Jews to Israel, where they became the fourth group among all population.
The historical tale is visually trimmed in the Dada style as a tribute to the pioneers of this movement, Tristan Tzara and Marcel Janco, two Jews of Romanian descent.
"Choosing Astra Film Festival as debut place for this film is like a promise. A promise that its mission as well as that of the documentary will be kept; that the history unfolds visually and narratively not to be forgotten, but to be integrated into the common memory so we can talk about it, as long as those who lived can still share it. And long afterwards", according to LiterNet.
The film is produced by Oana Giurgiu and Tudor Giurgiu. Mihai Tanase is the DoP and Letitia Stefanescu the editor. Sebastian Zsemlye and Alexandru Dragomir are the sound designers.
The project was also selected in 2010-2011 ARCHIDOC training initiative.