The City as a Trace of the Past

Urbanism and Displacement in Romanian New Wave Cinema. A Didactic Approach to Filmic Space.

Abstract

This article examines the representation of the city in Romanian New Wave cinema as both a material trace of the socialist past and a space of everyday experience in post-communist Romania. Through the analysis of a selection of significant films, it explores how urban environments—domestic interiors, administrative spaces, residential peripheries, and institutional architecture—function as narrative devices that reveal processes of displacement, normalization, and the persistence of power within the everyday landscape. Far from a monumental reading of the past, these films construct an urban memory grounded in repetition, waiting, and spatial standardization. From this perspective, cinema does not merely depict the city but activates it as a dynamic site of memory, establishing a critical dialogue with the viewer. The article concludes by incorporating an educational perspective that highlights the potential of cinema as a resource for critically interpreting urban space and its historical and democratic implications.