culturaladuba-ro [Google Translate]

Note: To view the accompanying photos click here

“That’s your responsibility, to look at all the parts of yourself, even the ones you don’t like, the questions you’re afraid of, to see who you are, how you were made, and then ask yourself: okay, now what do you want to do with this? ”

Leaving. For an 8-year-old, leaving can be a concept that comes to mind far too early, especially if they are venturing into the unknown. However, it becomes bearable when they have a mother who is determined to give them a new life.

The departure is rooted in the story of Sebastian Stan’s life. He left Constan?a as a child, leaving behind his beloved grandparents and friends on the stairs of the apartment building. He arrived with his mother in Austria, then in America, in New York. So that later his acting career would involve other and other departures.

But today we will not talk about leaving, but about returning .

With an extraordinary capacity for transformation, choosing the most different scenarios possible, Sebastian Stan is now one of the most appreciated actors in Hollywood, winner of a Golden Globe and nominated for an Oscar. He has dual citizenship – American and Romanian.

And in just a few weeks, he will be seen acting for the first time in a Romanian film, Fjord , directed by Cristian Mungiu, where any cinema artist fits perfectly – at the Cannes Film Festival, in the official competition.

To get close to a celebrity like Sebastian Stan, you normally have to go through an army of agents, whether impresarios, publicists, or literally, security guards.

On the set of the film in Fjord , Norway, things were different. For more than a month, Stan took off his invisible superstar cape and integrated himself into the different layers of the film crew, made up of Romanians, Norwegians, Swedes and Finns.

Also normally, such a celebrity rarely gives interviews and only to major, internationally known publications.

The fact that Sebastian Stan decided to give his first interview in Romania, after his Oscar nomination, to a small publication like Cultura la dub?, says much more about him than about us. It is just one of the ways in which he puts his notoriety at the service of others, to support causes he believes in, causes that otherwise do not enjoy much support. With the same reasoning, he supported, as producer and financier, the debut feature film of a Romanian director – Malul Vân?t , by Andreea Bor?un.

The discussion with Sebastian Stan was as natural as possible and touched on personal topics, which help us see him beyond his acting career. From the searches of a child who woke up in a completely different world, to the 42-year-old adult who tries to find his true identity and his role on earth. All this, in the context of the painful loss of his father – “with my father I spoke only in Romanian, which had created a very special intimacy between us, like an invisible thread that was only ours.”

What role does film play in this whole story? It is the art through which Stan can most authentically contribute to a world torn by conflict. And it is also part of his own quest.

The interview took place in Norway, in April 2025, during a filming break. Sebastian chose to speak in Romanian, but in places some ideas were expressed in English.

The material also presents the first images of Sebastian Stan on the set of Fjord , captured by photographer Adi Bulboac for Cultura la dub.

Continue reading