Ilarion Ciobanu

Actor, Director
Born: 28.10.1931 in Ciucur (Tighina County, Republic of Moldova)
Died: 07.09.2008 in Bucharest

“I spent my childhood in Constanta, on the seashore, I was a troubled teenager, plenty of sores, I lived free as a bird – the port is a big and generous parent who feeds all its birds.
Aged 12 I was employed as a shop boy and thereafter followed a long caravan of trades: porter, hoe laborer, tractor driver, miner, digger, carpenter, driver, sailor, fisherman etc. up till 1958 when I passed the exam at the ”I. L. Caragiale” Institute for Theatre and Film”. Which he does not graduate as he prefers to accept the part of Mitru Mot from the classic Setea/The Thirst by Mircea Dragan, for which he is awarded Best Actor Award at the Mamaia Film Festival, his first prize ever. He joins the team of the “ L.S.Bulandra” Theatre, first as an electrician then as an ensemble actor. He quickly and forever divorced theatre, only to marry film for life, even if their meeting was a happening. ”I was several times a peasant, I was a mason, a fisherman, an engineer, a builder, a driver, an outlaw, a collective farm chief, site master, again a fisherman, I was even an ancestor” (Ilarion Ciobanu).
“Ilarion Ciobanu is a character per se, who moves from one pic to another, who walks his human toughness, his stone faced punisher, carved without finesse, his menacing silences and his fist that hits without fail. Well yes, this is how we want him- those who watch films and those who make them- we want Ilarion Ciobanu in the part of Ilarion Ciobanu, we do not mind if on the credits the appears under some other name, we know for sure whom we are speaking about. “(Sanda Faur, Almanah Cinema 1975)
“Seldom have I met a more steadfast character. Ilarie is a one piece of a man, a huge piece of stone. He does not play a part he only communicates some thoughts through film, tells us something about his life. He does not pretend to be a performer, he does not like to make efforts for an acting composition. He cannot play people that he does not love. He measures everything according his real life behavior. Don’t even joke asking him to perform something that he cannot do in real life. To lie, to hide, to cheat. Not even to forgive if he considers this or that to be unforgivable. That’s why he imposed himself in Romanian cinema, beyond his appearance, a moral type that resembles him every single bit”.(Andrei Blaier – film director)

read more

Photo Gallery

Browse the entire gallery

Known for:

1977

1976

1973

1965

Festivals / Awards

1966	Mamaia	The Time of the Snowstorms The Uprising	Best Actor
1971	ACIN	The Siege The Brothers	Best Actor
1973	ACIN	The Last Cartridge The Conspiracy It’s a Long Way to Tipperary	Best Actor
1984	ACIN	Împliniri triste	Honorary Diploma
2016	UCIN		Academic Prize In Memoriam

Filmography

Actor

Tank	Părintele Petrian	2002
Terente		1995
The Stone Cross	Fane	1993
A Summer with Mara	Avram Iuga	1988
The Hidden Castle	Ioana's father	1987
The Shadows of the Sun	Octavian Borcea	1986
Battle in the Shadows	Sg. Oancea	1985
News Items	Barbu	1984
Coming Back	Moş Culai	1984
Laugh! That’s Life!	Tudor	1984
A World Without Sky	Dăneţ	1981
The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians	Traian Brad	1980
Iancu Jianu, the Tax Collector	Vârlan	1980
Pyre and Flame	Col. Cristescu	1979
The Man We Need	Vasile Mutu	1979
The Actress, the Dollars and the Transylvanians	Traian Brad	1979
Beyond the Horizon	Tudose Volintiru	1978
The Damage	Teodosie Lazăr	1978
Together Again	Hăisan	1978
Soldiers Never Cry	Un general	1978
For the Motherland	Mr. Moise Grozea	1977
The Prophet, the Gold and the Transylvanians	Traian Brad	1977
Sail on! (1976	Gherasim	1976
The City Seen from Above	Dan Cernega	1975
Cantemir	Fripp	1975
Immortals	Vasile	1974
The Last Cartridge	Mihai Roman	1973
It’s a Long Way to Tipperary	Mihai Roman	1973
The Conspiracy	Mihai Roman	1973
Single-handed	Mihai Roman	1973
With Clean Hands	Mihai Roman	1972
The Siege	Drăgan	1971
Oamenii nu sunt capre		1971
The Making of the World	Pintea	1970
The Last Crusade	Stroe Buzescu	1970
The Brothers	Ilarion	1970
Two Men for One Death	Pavel Costan	1969
The War of the Princesses	Ghindă	1969
The Hatchet	Nichifor Lipan	1969
The Column	Gerula	1968
Then Came the Legend	Redea	1968
Golgotha	Dăneţ	1966
The Time of the Snowstorms	Pavel Pavel	1966
The Uprising	Petre Petre	1965
The District of Gaiety	Gheorghe 2	1964
Lupeni ‘29	Dăneţ	1962
Five Men on the Road	Crăciun	1962
The Man Beside You	Popescu	1961
The Thirst	Mitru Moţ	1960

Director

Portretul mamei (scurtmetraj documentar)		1987
Împliniri triste (scurtmetraj documentar)		1984
După zece ani (scurtmetraj documentar)		1983

Screenwriter

The Trident Doesn’t Answer		1980

Articles & Interviews

Arta unui fel de a fi - Magda Mihăilescu
Clipa lui „stau și cuget” - Magda Mihăilescu
Ilarion Ciobanu – Prim plan - Eva Sîrbu
Ilarion Ciobanu – Fişă personală - Eva Sîrbu
Ilarion Ciobanu – „Am plătit pentru toate” - Eva Sîrbu
Nominations to 2017 UCIN Awards
„Arhiva Activă” - online, pe site-ul UNATC

Festivals / Awards
Filmography
Articles & Interviews