Childhood between subversiveness and constraint: The polyphony of representational forms in Romanian cinema

Childhood was a central theme in Romanian cinema during the Ceauşescu regime, reflecting both the ideals promoted by the party and the social realities of the time. Films produced during this period primarily had an educational and propagandistic role, promoting ideological values, but they also managed to capture a certain autonomy of the child, emotional complexity, and even subversion within child characters, despite the constraints imposed by family, educators, or government directives. In this paper I will analyze a selection of films from different stages of the Communist period, highlighting the representations of childhood and the complex relationships between autonomy, responsibility, and dependency foreshadowed in these productions. I will explore three representative films from different stages of the communist period: Aventurile lui BabuSca (1973, Gheorghe Naghi & Geta Doina Tarnavski), De dragul tau, Anca (1983, Cristiana Nicolae), and Întâmplari cu Alexandra (1989, Cornel Diaconu). Beyond their thematic content, these films introduced innovative forms of storytelling such as: blending realism with fantastical or exaggerated elements, exploring the psychology of the child, and experimenting with image, music, and editing in ways that made them aesthetically engaging.